It's Friday I'm in Love

Fall has finally arrived! Scenes like this, I shot at the local nature preserve, will soon be gone for another year. But the new season brings its own rewards.

On the love list this week:

This book.

It's a gorgeous book that combines two of my favorite things: poetry and illustration. Gah! Love, Love, Love! Here's an example:

The poem that accompanies this awesome art piece is called (aptly enough) "How to Find a Poem"

How to Find a Poem

Wake with a dream-filled head.

Stumble out into the morning,

barely aware of how the sun

is laying down strips of silver

after three days' rain,

of how the puddles

are singing with green.

Look up startled

at the crackle of something large

moving through the underbrush.

Your pulse jumping,

gaze into its beautiful face.

The wary doe's body,

the soft flames of ears.

As it bounds away,

listen to the rhythm 

of your own heartbeat's disquiet.

Burn into memory

the white flag of its parting.

Before you return

to house and habit,

cast your eyes into the shadows,

where others stand waiting

on delicate hooves.

-- Joyce Sidman

Every poem and accompanying illustration is just as beautiful. I can't say enough how much I love this book.

A few other things I added to my list this week:

Heidi Swapp Life Theme book.

There were a few different designs to choose from but I love the black and white stripes. I plan on covering the pink "best of times" square with a scrap from an old painting of mine. The cool thing about this is the inside:

Every page looks like this. Yay! The square on the left (3 1/2") is for your photo and then you can journal or write about it on the lines opposite. I LOVE this layout and this notebook. I'm trying to gather my favorite images into a book form and this is perfect. I found this at Michael's and with the 40% coupon was a great deal. I will get more of these.

Favorite photos from this week:

In honor of the poem above. This one was watching me very closely as I traveled through the woods that day.

I haven't seen as many monarch butterflies this year. Whenever I spot one, I try to get a lot of shots. This one made me happy. :)

That's it for Friday Love. Have a great weekend and thank you for stopping by.