equal dark, equal light

the harvest moon brought a load of tomatoes:

seven pounds in one day.

my first orange bell pepper.

the last stalk of tigridia is blooming.

homemade crabapple pie to celebrate the first day of autumn.

i made a large batch of tomato sauce...

it came out slightly orange because of all the yellow tomatoes.

it’s still hot here, upper 80s/lower 90s, with more of the same forecasted all week. perfect tomato-ripening weather.

i’ve been reading “The Poetry of Rilke” (translated by edward snow), and the poems that jump out at me most are those that have to do with the seasons. “Late Autumn in Venice” is gorgeous, especially this image: “And from the gardens / the summer hangs like a heap of marionettes, / headfirst, exhausted, done in.” more appropriate for right now, though, is “Autumn Day”:

Lord: it is time. The summer was immense.
Lay your long shadows on the sundials,
and on the meadows let the winds go free.

Command the last fruits to be full;
give them just two more southern days,
urge them on to completion and chase
the last sweetness into the heavy wine.

Who has no house now, will never build one.
Who is alone now, will long remain so,
will stay awake, read, write long letters
and will wander restlessly up and down
the tree-lined streets, when the leaves are drifting.