the Wise Robin

summer fade

 

 

A glimpse at our alpine camping trip a few weeks back. We camped by the Kiewa River, heading into the mountains during the day to do some hiking; Wallace's Hut, Cope Hut, Mt. Cope & Mt.McKay. It was a wonderful end to our summer holidays & there's no-one else I'd rather have spent it with than my gorgeous peeps. Niamh did quite a lot of walking for a two year old, frustrating at times, when there are still five kilometres to walk before nightfall & every wildflower just has to be examined. Perfect too as a reminder to keep things slow & mindful. Mt.Cope was by far the best walk, even though there was no sign of brumbies grazing on the moor- like landscape. I love the High Country, feel right at home up there. The landscape, the light, the cool air, the spaciousness all around & the spaciousness it creates in my mind. We all felt a little sad as we drove back into town. We're now back in the swing of things, another high country trip planned in just six weeks. Whoop! While the days are still hot here, the evenings & mornings have cooled right off. The sun is rising later, the evenings draw to a close sooner. I might have even spotted the first leaves turning. There's still plenty in the garden coming into the kitchen, carrots, tomatoes, herbs, zucchinis, the odd strawberry, flowers, onions & corn, but I can't help feeling that there is not much left in her, this glorious summer, the first summer I have deeply & truly fallen in love with.    There is a certain melancholy I feel as each season slows to its conclusion & yet such anticipation & hope of what the next will bring. I wonder if anyone else feels this too?

 

 

 

 

 

flux

 

 

Aah, summer, she's flying by in a whirlwind of heat & humidity, pool evenings, river floats, ice-cream, berries, sunshiny eyebrights, cherry tomatoes, late nights, starry skies, early morning sunshine, cut grass, eucalypt haze, camping, big alpine skies, bush walks, summer reading, frocks & shorts, sun kissed salty skin....I've really tried to embrace summer this year. Her & I don't really have a history of getting on, what can I say, I have Scottish skin. Everything about summer this year, even the heat, perhaps not the flies, I've dived right into. We arrived home yesterday from up in the mountains, a little camping trip before William returns to work, but over the past few weeks we've spent a great deal of time  breathing fresh life into our home by rearranging a number of rooms.  This past year I've been going a little stir crazy without a space to spread my creative wings & art materials. All the books in our front room, which we called the art room but was really just full of books, we're bursting out of their seams & fading with the constant direct sunlight, so I moved them all to our bedroom & created a library& art room. All books, art materials, filing, printer, games & toys are now all in one room, everything at our fingertips! I'm excited because there's a table in the middle of the room big enough for sewing, painting, crafting, blocking knits, linocuts, drawing, thinking, having a cup of tea, playing a board game....& the best part is that I don't have to clear it away so we can eat together. I've been reading Marie Kondo's book about decluttering. I was hearing so much about it & thought it might work to clear the edgy & stifled feeling I was experiencing with all our things. So far I've followed her technique for clothing, books, papers, linen, toys & furniture. Three full carloads & five garbage bags went to the op-shop & a garage half filled with furniture waiting to be sold has come out of this home of ours. The house feels lighter, I feel lighter, it's an amazing feeling. Makes me realise how much stuff we collect over time & how much we don't actually need. That's what I love about camping, the simplicity, a bag of clothes, a small shelter, cooking gear,  nature & each other. Just the basics to think about, without the clutter.  We  ended up moving our room to the old art room, the perfect summer room, two walls of windows, up in the trees, a bed & no more, birds & sunrise waking us up every morning. The girls are now in together, something I pondered for the past year, not really knowing if the age gap would be too much of an issue but for now it seems to be working for everyone. All this rearranging leaves a spare room which Will & I might move into when winter hits. It's been a mammoth task rearranging four rooms & we're all pretty exhausted but it's working & it feels good. I haven't been spending as much time writing here as I'd like to. I try & keep my days screen free for the girls & come evening time when they're in bed, staring at a screen is the last thing I feel like doing. I have been pondering this space & what it brings me & you & whether it's worth the time continuing. I love that it's somewhere I can curate my days & weeks, share what we're up to with friends & family & all of you reading out there. I know I'm not quite done here, but it's not quite right at the same time. Perhaps a little decluttering is what's needed here too. I hope wherever you are you're soaking up the last of the season.