There are so many new things to see here. It's all still a mass of images. Oh, I don't mean that I can't see. Yes, of course I can. Rocks, massive rocks. Pine trees on the mountain, salt cedar and willow and sycamore along Manuelitas Creek, grasses and sages and wildflowers in the meadow, all very beautiful. But to see, really see, the landforms and the textures and colors, and the birds and mammals and insects, all the community of this land, of each different habitat, I need to learn more. And learning takes time, and close, daily acquaintance, just as it takes a long time to know a friend in all her various changing moods and seasons, to know her history and her wants and wishes. It's taken me twenty years to learn just a little bit about MeadowKnoll, and about the Hill Country. A summer month in the Sangres, a month in the winter--it's only long enough to tantalize me with possibilities.

I've been a little out of focus, doing different things, none of them at top speed. Working on the last chapter of Landscapes (the memoir), helping Bill with his log restoration project, reading (Nancy Pickard's The Virgin of Small Plains), knitting (another tam), quilting (a table runner and some chair back hangers). Not quite lazy, but switching back and forth when I feel like it, which I can't do when I'm working flat-out on a writing project. For me, that's what makes this a "vacation." Yesterday I led a memoir workshop for seven of the women who live in this little community--fun and interesting, as memoir workshops always are. Sharing stories brings us closer and reminds us of how alike we really are, under the skin. I have the feeling that I know each of them much better than I would if we'd encountered one another at an over-drinks get-together. Thanks to Ann for hosting us, and to Editha for making sandwiches.

Reading note. Still--in a way--no one sees a flower--really--to see a flower takes time--like to have a friend takes time.--Georgia O'Keefe

Comments

[andylynne]

You touched a cord when you said getting to know a place takes time. I grew up in So Ca. I knew where to go and how to get there.I never even blinked when I set out across town or across the sate. When I moved to Missouri I was a duck out of water. So 15 years later I know more about my new home.My roots are still in Ca. But I have learned about the wonderful seasons here, the storms that take my breath away. The land that makes me want to take care of it because it's wild and free & open. Thanks for reminding us that the land we live on helps shape who we are.

[rosemary odum]

Hi Susan,

When my daughter,Mimi, was in Durango,Co. she discovered a charming book store: Maria's on Main Street. Only problem - they had none of your books in the store. Mimi suggested they look into having your books available. Hope they follow through on her suggestion. She plans to go back next summer, I know she will check out Maria's.
Rosemary Odum, Lakeland , FL

[Cindy]

Do you know how your Texas home is surviving the current drenching?

[Paula S. Yost]

Still sweating here in East Texas and envying you the cooler climate. You do so many things for others, Susan, and that's wonderful. But I'm very glad to hear you're taking time to 'befriend' the land around your second home. Enjoy!

[Beverly]

You have solved a personal mystery for me in "The Rosemary Caper". My grandmother left a string of black beads smelling wonderfully of roses. I have never found a source that told how these were made, now I know. My beads are over 100 years old, but still retain their fragrence. Now I will find out how to preserve them for my own granddaughter!

In closing, your mysteries are great, your characters "grow", and the herbal tips invaluable, thank you!

[Sheryl Hart]

So glad you are enjoying "Virgin of Small Plains". It was one that I found very interesting and with some nice twists and turns. I am always taken aback when someone of celebrity actually likes the same book I do.

PS I chuckled when I found Ruby likes Sue Grafton, too.