Monday, August 29, 2022

The Fleeting Days of Summer

 

"Sometimes I need only to stand wherever I am to be blessed." ~ Mary Oliver

 

This is the last weekend in August--how can that be? Fall arrives early in Colorado. I can see the sun's slant of light becoming lower on the horizon and the air has a chill at night. It won't be long until the aspens turn golden yellow and we have our first whisper of snow on the mountains.




"Happiness grows at our own fireside and is not to be picked in strangers' gardens." 
~ Douglas Jerrold


Summer is passing quickly but there is still much of its beauty to behold and enjoy.




"But once in a while, the odd thing happens, once in a while the dream comes true." ~ W H Auden

My husband and I took a walk around  The Hudson Gardens and Event Center in Littleton, Colorado recently.  Hudson Gardens is a nonprofit organization encompassing thirty acres of garden exhibits, trails, open spaces, and event venues and it provides free admission from sunrise–sunset every day of the year for self-directed exploration. I've blogged about it more extensively in the past--click here--to read that post.




"There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." 
~ Edith Wharton


The garden has amazing water lily ponds full of the most delicate and beautiful flowers...




"Preserve your memories, keep them well, what you forget you can never retell."
~ Louisa May Alcott


...as well as many other flowers, shrubs, trees, and art sculptures to enjoy.

 
"


"The words 'far far away' always had a strange charm" ~ Alfred Tennyson


There are many benches along the trails where one can sit and appreciate the garden's serenity.




"A loving heart is the truest wisdom." Charles Dickens


The resident geese and ducks looked very content in the shade and waters of the garden. 





"In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed." 
~ Kahlil Gibran


Hudson Gardens is a treasure to visit in all seasons and the perfect place to take a walk in nature.  We are fortunate to have it in our area!  




Another treasure I was happy to visit in August was the author Susan Branch at the Tattered Cover Bookstore in the Aspen Grove branch in Littleton, Colorado. 



Susan was doing a cross-country road trip with her husband, Joe, to promote her wonderful new book called "Distilled Genius: A Collection of Life-Changing Quotations." 

 I have been a fan of Susan's handwritten and painted books since her first book "Heart of the Home" and have been following her blog for years, so I was very excited to hear she would be stopping by close to me! 




There was a large crowd of fans to greet her--a few who traveled from as far away as Wyoming and Iowa! She gave a lovely talk about how she collected quotations all her life and what they meant to her. She said quotations were:
"Practical expressions of wisdom from courageous thinkers and teachers ahead of their time, nurturing and life-affirming, hilarious, heroic, and human ~ they taught me how to be brave, showed me where to find my dreams, and encouraged me to try and make them a reality.


All of the quotations in this blog post came from her book.  It is another treasure I will always cherish. Thank you, Susan!


"The sweetest flower that glows,
 I give you as we part. 
For you, it is a rose
For me, it is my heart.
~ Frederick Peterson

See you all in September!


You can also find me on



Bookmark and Share

33 comments:

EricaSta said...

Thank you for your last nice comment. Now I enjoy here the wonderful captures through the Park.


Your post is amazing and indeed, I enjoyed the virtuell walk. 


Happy MosaicMonday, have a good week.

eileeninmd said...

Hello pat,
Lovely post and a beautiful post. The gardens look beautiful, a wonderful way to spend the day. The mural on the bookstore is beautiful too. It is nice you were able to meet Susan Branch. I love all the quotes. Take care, have a happy new week!

Rostrose said...

Dear Pat,
it was a lovely walk with you through Hudson Gardens. I don't know if I'll ever get to Colorado in my life (probably not...) but it was nice to get to know the place through you. The quotes caught my eye right from the start - now I know where you found them!
Have a nice week - all the best from Austria.
Traude
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2022/08/blackout-teil-3-noch-fragen-offen.html

Linda W. said...

What beautiful gardens! I especially love the water lilies.

Tom said...

...the water lilies are my favorites!!!

NCSue said...

Beautiful beautiful beautiful!!!
Thanks so much for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2022/08/classics.html

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

How neat to find that Susan Branch book. I love looking through old bookstores when we travel. I always find a treasure. I love your quotes today and will write some of them down in my journal. Lovely photos too. Good summer memories!

Jeanie said...

I'm a big fan of Susan, too, and you were so lucky to see her and to get your book signed! I doubt she'll ever come here! And the garden -- spectacular. I am SO NOT ready for summer to end and grabbing every second of it. It looks like you are, too.

stevebethere said...

What a nice post and so colourful I agree it's much cooler at night here in London can't believe it will be Autumn soo already goes so quick

Have a colourfultastic week 👍

Lydia C. Lee said...

THese are gorgeous - esp the waterlilies #BlueMonday

Joanne said...

Those are some beautiful gardens! My husband was just saying yesterday that he can already see signs of fall; the slant of the sunlight is different, some of the leaves are already turning (probably more do to the drought like conditions but still), and there is a crispness to our mornings.

Carol @Comfort Spring Station said...

beautiful photos and mosaics - fall always made me sad as a child - it looked like the world was dying

Tanya said...

Thank you for posting these beautiful garden photos, and also for the info about the Susan Branch book. I know someone who will love that as a Christmas gift! Have a wonderful week!

William Kendall said...

Beautiful shots.

Fun60 said...

The waterlilies are beautiful as are the gardens. What a wonderful place to stroll and relax and enjoy the last days od summer.

Penny Carlson said...

Those gardens look beautiful! How great you got to meet Susan. I enjoyed the quotes in your post.

ellen b. said...

A wonderful garden to explore for sure. I love that places like these are available to many! What fun to see Susan in person, a real treat. Happy end of August to you!

Rambling Woods said...

Beautiful place to visit. I am going to take a look at this book,,,,, Michelle

Lowcarb team member said...

What a lovely place to visit, your photographs are a joy to see.

Enjoy the last few days of August and have a happy month of September.

All the best Jan

Lydia C. Lee said...

Gorgeous! How lovely!

Lorrie said...

Oh, lucky you to attend a Susan Branch event. I'm awaiting my copy of Distilled Genius. The Gardens look like a beautiful place to spend some time while summer lingers.

Spare Parts and Pics said...

Many beautiful photos here, but my favorite is the one of the bench in the shade looking out on the pond. Lovely!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

This is really a perfectly made blog post Pat! Your beautiful flowers and the appropriate quotations -- and then the wonderful surprise at the end, when you told us about the special visit to the Tattered Cover. What a joy it must have been to meet Susan Branch and how great to have the personally signed copy of her latest book. And then what fun to learn that all the quotations you used were from that very book! I loved this. Happy September!

diane b said...

Beautiful photos of the gardens. I love the quotations too. Susan sounds an interesting person.We have arrived in September and Spring as our seasons are measured from the first of the month.

roentare said...

These flowers photographs are just fantastic. The ducks and rest of the fauna are just as good. Thank you for the wonderful photos.

Jim said...

Wonderful shots.

Light and Voices said...

Joy ...that is what I felt as I read the different quotes. Congratulations on meeting the author and getting a signed copy of the book. Glad you shared this experience with us.

Carol Benton said...

What gorgeous photos from the Hudson Gardens! It's truly a blessing to slow down and observe the beauty of nature. Thank you for participating in Talent-Sharing Tuesdays Link-Up 31.
Carol
www.scribblingboomer.com

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

There are few pleasures nicer than a good botanical garden. It looks like you found one.

I read about the book and remembered that at one time I collected quotations. I have no idea why I quit. Books like that you can just dip in and out of as you have a little time.

Angie said...

Pat - I can relate to your comments about "fleeting summer" - every day I look at the grasshoppers in my garden and it makes me think of Aesop's fable "The Grasshopper and the Ant." You have included some inspiring quotes in your blog post - my favorite is the Mary Oliver quote. I have a thing for water gardens and lily pads, maybe because I know I can never have one! Beautiful photos. So happy for you that you had the opportunity to meet Susan Branch! Thanks for linking to Mosaic Monday!

carol l mckenna said...

Oh Wow! What a beautiful place you photographed and captured its beauty so well ~ and Susan Branch ~ what an awesome book of quotes you organized ~ thanks so much ~ Xo

Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,

A ShutterBug Explores,
(aks A Creative Harbor)

Crafty Green Poet said...

Your photos are lovely! Hudson Gardens looks like a wonderful place to visit.

ttjsaunders@gmail.com said...

This is such a beautiful post with gorgeous photos