Once Upon A Time Before This Time

 

Jasper

          In the before times, when all the Boomers were children still, and the world was just beginning for them, there was a time when dogs and cats ruled the neighborhoods in the Pacific Northwest woods and fields and suburbs. I would hazard that such was the case all over the world.

          Of course, it was a matter of opinion, which was actually the boss on any street or in any particular backyard. My father always said that the dogs were really in charge. They ranged freely doing pretty much as they wished. Anytime a person was out of doors, there would be a local dog supervising, just to make sure, you know. To see that you did your job correctly!

          If I had asked a dog who ruled the neighborhood, he would say, “why I do. I watch and ward. My eye is always open, and my voice is eager to protest evil! Let the burglar or brigand beware my teeth!”

          “Well said, sir!” I would say.

          But we know who truly ruled, monarch of the woods and fields. Magisterial in his grave mien, a mighty Tom Cat. Striped, or black, black and white, or parti-colored calico, he watched and judged it all. From his battle scared face to his twitching tail tip, every inch a king.

          These were the days before the fixing of what didn’t need to be fixed! And the fields and garages and woods brought forth young, as God willed it.

          Into this time was born a Tom kitten. He was as striped as all such good fellows are. His tail was short, and his head was large. His mother was attentive to himself and to his brothers and sisters, therefore he survived to grow and become a great-jowled sire of many.

          I believe that I shall name him Jasper. The name stands in for all the Toms I remember. All warriors, feline ronin. Each an absolute ruler of a certain square footage or acreage or however they organize themselves.

          If I had asked Jasper, “who rules here sir?” he might have said, “do you see this place? This backyard and this section of wooded land, and the greater block? I have absolute rule here. No other Tom would dare approach. Many are the scars and torn ears I have dealt out in my day!”

          A resonant and profound “meow”, self-contented and deep would have followed. More like a growl than a simple “meow.” “Grrrowel?”

          “But what of the dogs, sir?  What of them? Surely you fear those big leaping beasts?”

          “Oh lady, a dog’s nose is most awfully sensitive, and vulnerable you might say. They are very averse to having the nose torn. I fear them not! Let them beware my claws and my battle cries.”

          “But Jasper, sir” I might cry, “what is the meaning of all this warfare? Why must you have a kingdom?”

          “Why, it’s for the kittens, lady! Always the kittens. My get are multitudes, and they bear my stripes and my jaunty tail to mark them well! In each of these five houses I have a wife. And each wife has given me three or four sons and daughters every year!

          “They are my riches, the coin of my realm!” he would say.

          “Oh, Jasper, what is the meaning of it all? Tell me your true heart on the matter!”

          “Very well, madam, I will tell you. Kittens are a sort of medium of exchange. They are precious and each one is needed. A kitten given in love is a true gift of the heart. A gift that lives on. Not like a book, or a rose, or goodness knows what, lady! A kitten is the living proof of love. They are ineffable.

          “All of my children live in houses, barns, fields and even in businesses for many miles around. This is my success and the reason for my rule.”

          With that he would stalk away slowly, heavily, on powerful legs, finding his own way off into the brush and brambles until not even the tip of his stripy tail showed any more at all.

          Willie and Suzy agree that this is a true representation of local history, and that you may take it as it is given!

Our Mission Field Is Earth

 

            I was born into the Minnow clan. Think of Samurai family structure. I didn’t choose my path. It was there waiting before my birth, or even the births of my family members for multitudes of generations.
            The Minnow clan operates on planet Earth as it is known, in the system of Sol, also as it is known on Earth. I speak as natives of Earth do, as my training has prepared me to do. The reason that Minnows deal with Earth is because our originating home is physically compatible with Earth, so we can operate there with a minimum of adjustments. No surgeries required, thank the One! We Minnows appear very nearly human.
            We are called Minnows, a word from English, because we are slippery, light and obscure. Our goal is to be subversive and unknown. Unseen. Nothing to pay attention to, on this riotous planet.
            Our mission field is Earth, exclusively.

***

            It was midnight and very dark.  The big harvesting machine with headlights burning into the mist drove at a steady 25 mph down the country road. Coming at last upon the coordinates of a low plain unmarked building, it slowed to a crawl and then paused. There was almost no other traffic at this time of night in this remote location, but one sedan passed the big machine, going in the opposite direction at an even 50 mph.
            Once the sedan’s lights were no long visible there was activity, if anyone had been there to see it. The harvesting machine went dark as it stood there on the narrow roadway. Two dim figures descended from the cab. They carried no lights. One walked twenty feet behind the first, constantly looking behind and around. Monitoring. The first figure approached the dark installation. He paused, consulting some mechanism he brought up near his face.
            Seeming satisfied, he proceeded.
            Behind the building, on the side facing flat fields of wheat, there was a door made of metal with no window or opening of any kind, not even for a doorknob, nor any signage, not even a “private-keep out” sign. The first figure touched the door’s locking mechanism, it released, and the door slowly opened. The first figure slipped inside, followed in a moment by his spotter.
            Inside the facility it was dark also, except for an open doorway about thirty feet down the hall. A bluish light filled that opening. Looking like shadows the two figures approached the blue lit doorway. Standing back, reading the mechanism again, the first figure learned that there were two persons in the room. One was their objective, the other was some sort of medical staff person, but not a physician. Maybe a nurse on night shift. She wasn’t wide awake, but she wasn’t fully asleep either. A book had slipped from her hand, laying in her lap. Her brunette hair fell down in front of her face. When she woke she would be very distressed.
            No.1 put her into a temporary deep sleep, by means of certain wavelengths. They had maybe ten minutes before she began to be aware.
            The subject of this operation was lying naked on a metal gurney of some sort. He had some sensors stuck on his body in various places, and an IV installed. His clothing and shoes were under the gurney. His name was Brian Campbell. He was 42 years old. Sandy with freckles and built like a soldier possibly. He was unconscious.
            No. 2 removed the IV quickly and neatly. He sealed the small wound with a touch of his finger. He removed the electrical sensors, pulling out some hair in the process. Once Brian was unencumbered by this equipment, No.1 piled his clothing onto his stomach, forgetting his shoes in the rush.
            No.1 put a hand on Brian’s forehead, and he floated quietly up off of the gurney, just enough to clear the surface. Both figures left the room with Brian floating between them, while the nurse slept on. Silently, they left by means of the same back door, then relocking it. Then they retreated down the short driveway to the street, Brian between them, still sleeping. No. 2 doing his spotting routine the whole time.
            Out on old route 11 their ship waited; disguise gone. Dark and low, it appeared vague, insubstantial. It was about the size of a city bus, but lower, and shaped as if worn by water or wind. It was not symmetrical, but not too far off of that either.  It looked organic.
            A long port on the side facing the building slipped open. No. 1 stepped inside. He turned to watch Brian float in behind him. No.2, after a quick scanning of the area, hopped inside the ship and the port slid shut.
            The ship, showing no lights or any identifying markings, lifted silently up a couple hundred feet, and then it just wasn’t there.
            Brian must have lived right. He was lucky. When he awoke he was near home on the slope of a rural hillside. He looked like he had hastily dressed in the dark and he was barefoot. He was sore, but not injured. He had some odd partial memories of swimming, or maybe floating in the dark.
            He didn’t know what had happened to him, but he could see his house from the spot where he woke. He homed right on to that familiar destination, walking in a slightly dazed state to his own front door. It was locked but he had his keys in his pocket right where they normally were.
            “Brian?” his wife said, coming into the front room. “Where have you been?  Why are you barefoot? I was terrified, Brian!” She stood, with tears running down her face, imploring him.
            “I don’t know,” he said.

Meeting Night And A Power Purr

 

            “Is everyone here?” said Toots. “I have a couple of matters to discuss with all of you.”
            “I’m here, and Willie is lying around here within earshot, pretending to sleep,” said Suzy. Her face was rather faint in the glass and her voice was remote and rusty but managing to come through.
            “How about Buddy? Is he on too?” asked Toots, staring into the talking glass. “I’d like to talk to Professor Farn’s temporary cat, but I don’t know her name, so I can’t call her.”
            “Hey, Toots, how’s it going baby?” said Buddy appearing suddenly in the night window.
            Toots looked a little startled but kept calling the meeting to order. She often didn’t approve of gentleman callers but decided that California manners must be a little different and that it didn’t mean anything.
            “I would also like to have Skinnies attend but he’s off somewhere and I don't know if he got the message,” added Toots.
            “Violet? I can see you clearly, you are fairly nearby,” said Toots. “Now, of course, Sammie is right in the office with me.”
            “Yo! Present,” said Violet.
            “Meow! Alright. Here we go. It has become obvious to Sammie and me that a mother cat is living rough with her kittens somewhere around here. I have no idea if she even has a name or has ever lived in a house. Well, she does have an emergency name, Louise. I don’t know if she was dumped, or her lady died or something awful has happened to her home. My gentleman thinks that she has her family hiding in his neighbor’s shed! I am afraid that her kittens with be so uncivilized that no one will be able to take care of them.
            “What I’m talking about is trust. In most cases trust is a life saving issue for a cat. If a cat can find someone who is trustworthy to love, why, all of her problems are over, or his.
            “I was thinking that we could put our heads together and send a power purr to this Louise. Meow! If we could convince her to trust Sammie and my gentleman, he could help her find a safe home for herself  and her kittens.
            “That should work! What cat could resist such a purr?” Violet spoke up. Violet knew all about trust and was a great believer in good intentions.
            “Let’s do it,” said Suzy. “I can’t stand thinking of those babies being out there with foxes, coyotes, owls and hawks and snakes!”
            “Every cat, especially you femmes, has free will, you know, ladies,” said Willie. “We can send the message, but we can’t guarantee that she will agree that it is the course of best wisdom. She will do as she thinks wisest in her situation. But, by all means, let us send the purr.”
            “Yeah, we better try,” agreed Buddy. “It is the loving thing to do in this case.”
            Sammie hopped up by Toots, so she could see in the talking glass as well. All the cats shut their eyes together. They called Louise as hard as they could in their hearts, and they purred the message of hope and trust to her just as hard as they could, all of one accord, for a long few minutes, until they felt the message had gone out.
            Toots opened her eyes and looking intently at every one in the glass, said, “good. Thank you all, ladies and gentleman cats! It’s the very best we know how to do. Louise must take the message and do as she thinks best.”
            “Now the other thing is a mystery! Sometimes, you know how it is, I see stuff. Not regular stuff. It’s on the other side of the window, so, I deal with it the best I can, though it can be scary! Meowwwww!” announced Toots to the still assembled meeting.
            “Here we go,” said Sammie. She hopped back down and settled into her bed.
            “You sleep too much Sammie, you miss everything,” said Toots. “For one thing there are lights. I mean round lights that are like colored bubbles that are all lit up inside. They roll along the ground, and then they shoot up into the air. They, like, hide. Then they pop out again!
            “Sometimes they make ringing or buzzing noises! What are they? Anybody know? Have any of you seen them?” asked Toots with her eyes wide. Since this was a rhetorical question, she continued. “Then I see huge figures, coming and going. What are they doing? Yeah, I know, we have talked with some Forest People, but these are more like giant dogs. Ew!”

            “Sorry! Sorry I’m late to the purr, everybody! I’m adding my late agreement!” Skinnies had arrived. He looked back over his shoulder nervously.
            “But, yeah, Toots, I’ve seen ‘em. They follow me around!  I don’t know what they want. I don’t know if they just love me, or want to skin me out,” he said in an aggrieved tone. “Makes me nervous. Keeps me up at night, running the streets, trying to keep ahead of 'em. Blue ones. Like eyeballs, the size of, like, grapefruits!”
            “Have you tried asking them?” said Willie, who didn’t much approve of running. “Maybe they are chasing you because they have a message for you.”
            “Come on!  That’s the most cornball thing I ever heard, Willie! You ask ‘em! Good night! See you in your dreams guys and gals!” And just like that he was offline!
            Suzy said she would keep an eye open for them, and report back if any appeared. That green dog bit had kind of put her off nighttime gazing, but she would go back to her station just for Toots. Violet said she would be looking too. But, she wasn’t expecting much.
            Buddy said, “keep watching the skies! Woooo!” and laughed it off, nervously.
            Everyone jumped and scattered when the door opened suddenly. The meeting broke up instantly, because Toots and Sammie’s human had arrived with treats and a hairbrush, and nothing’s better than that after a busy meeting night! Nothing beats a good brushing with treats!
            “I bring you ladies greetings from the Upper Lefthand Corner,” he said.
            Toots and Sammie looked at him, purring like the very good kitties that they were!

Singers Sing

 

          It started gradually, almost imperceptibly. It was almost like an insect noise. Dry and light. Like an audible tickle, and just as annoying.

            It was that very same evening after Jessie and Julia came home from their day in  Joseph City. Julia was tucked up in her bed reading Paul Johnson’s A History of The American People.
The book was interesting enough to keep her reading long after the sun had gone down, and her parents had gone to sleep across the hall.
            She began to think that there were mosquitoes in her room. There was a persistent, almost audible sound like a miniscule chorus. Distracting. She shut the book and laid it aside. She began doing that thing where you examine the air to see if anything is flying in your space.
            “Look inside,” said the Golden Frog. The lamplight reflected off of him there. He had left his green house and was near the edge of the dresser top.
            “Usually, the most annoying stuff is on the inside,” he continued.
            “I hear something, Frog. It’s almost like mosquitoes, but there are too many voices. I don’t see anything flying around in here. I think I’ll go out and sit on the steps for a while,” said Julia. “Maybe it will be quieter out there.”
            Jessie and Beth wouldn’t have minded at all, of course, but still she didn’t want to wake them, so she slipped outside unnoted. Before she left the room, she put the Golden Frog in her jacket pocket, just like when she was tiny.
            It was fine dark moonless night, rather chilly after being in the house all evening. The chickens noticed that she was outside and made a few sleepy chicken sounds. The wind was blowing, but not hard. However, the wind was listening, as it often is.
            Golden Frog sat on her blue jeaned knee, as he always had, when she wanted to talk but not to her parents. Together they listened to the little song that was annoying Julia.
            “Where there is a song, Emmy,” he laughed, “there must be singers.”
            “That’s sensible Frog. Somebody has to be making that noise.”
            “The truth of the matter is that your very body is a battleground. It is the property of Creator, but a force of will-o-wisps, niddy-noddies, grimkins, or whatever, have set up camp there and are singing in your blood. They will drive you mad, if they can and break your heart by any means that they can.
            “We must defeat them!” insisted Frog. “We must out-sing them!”
            “You’ve given me a lot to believe, and I wouldn’t know where to start,” said Julia.
            “Many voices are needed,” said Frog. The wind heard his words and went flying.
            “Oh, Golden Frog, you’ve never told me wrong, but this one is very hard,” said Julia. “I can’t bear the buzzing song. It would drive me mad I think. But I feel so helpless and here I am discussing an invisible problem, with a talking gold nugget. I do feel foolish!” Julia was near tears. It was around midnight, and no one knew where she was. A time of flux.
            Julia felt suddenly as if she didn’t know where she was either. It was dark, yes, night time but somehow something was shifted. Her familiar world felt just almost out of reach, out at her finger tips.
            But as the familiar became weaker and smaller, and further away, in that small area of her true world a pair of shining yellow eyes appeared. The confusing darkness retreated, and she was back on the steps, gold nugget clutched in her right hand, facing the great tawny cat.
            “So, Julia, who am I to you? What is my name?” rumbled the cat.
            “Dina! The word dina’ kept coming to my mind over and over and it became a name! Does Dina suit you oh great cat?” said Julia hopefully. She felt a great calling to embrace the mighty being but did not dare.
            “Yes. I like that name. My first own name. Thank you, Julia,” and she came near and leaned on Julia’s shoulder as any cat does and purred for a while. They just sat together in peace, as one does with a cat.  Then Dina spoke.
            “The wind tells me that you have need of a singing? The wind is mischievous, but not a liar. He told me why also. This is serious Julia.  To whom much is given, from whom much can be taken away, if we are lax. That golden voice in your hand is right.  We must fight it by true singing. We must call the mightiest singer of all. Walk out in the desert just a little way with me and he will come. The wind talks to him also.”
            So, Dina the great cat and tall black haired Julia walked together a few hundred yards out into the dry brushy and stony desert land behind the little old blue mobile home. Julia was not afraid since she walked with Dina.
            When he came, Weller was the largest creature Julia had ever seen. Sometimes he seemed to be around seven feet tall and sometimes he seemed like he must be ten feet tall. He was dark brown, then he seemed to become silvery. It was hard to be sure in the dim bit of ambient light out there. His voice made Isaac Hayes sound like a tenor. His voice was deep plush velvet. A voice to command. A voice for a singing. A voice to move hills and mountains.
            “You will not see them, but my people are here too,” said Weller. “Only one of us need be visible. We will all sing.”
            And they did. Many voices in different tones of profound depth, with some also ripe and feminine. First soft on the breeze, the song echoed off the nearby stones, and then rolled downhill toward the highway. It was not specific in its intention.  It was a song of general restitution.  It gave no definition to small evils. It rolled over their insignificance.
            The voices came together and became almost unbearable to Julia. Her golden frog was hot from the pressure of her hand.  She did feel a battle within, which she had not expected.  It was brief. Horror rose inside her body and then was gone.
            Over and over the song washed. She felt it surge each time, and each wave filled her  heart with more joy, until she could hardly contain it.
            “It is enough,” said Weller finally. “That is how we make war. We overshadow evil, we out sing it.” He laughed. “We’ll leave you now Julia, and you oh great cat.” And then he was gone.
            “All of that noise is gone, Dina,” Julia said on the way back to the steps and home. “I’m quiet inside again.”
            “It is good,” said Dina, well pleased.
            Dina left her there on the steps and padded away into the early morning, way before sunup. Julia slipped inside, and into her room to finally get into her nighty and go to sleep.
She put the Golden Frog back into his house.
            When she turned away, he said, “Told ya, Emmy! Good night!”

A Second Word From Our Sponsor

 

Drawing by Harvey Phillip Pratt.

*!🌲💚🌲!*

It Was A Day Of No Labor

            You know, sometimes, not a darn thing gets done here in the forest. It feels like everything just stops. And that’s alright. If fact, it’s a good thing. Head down, bulling through life is not sentient behavior!

            It’s the end of summer. The whole scene just takes a breath. Even the wild grass and broadleaf plants are tired, feel like they’ve done enough growing for this particular year. Seeds are drying, getting ready to weather the winter. The grasses have put in some more rhizomes, or whatever people call those roots. Berries have all been eaten by us or those pushy bears.

            Firs are getting ready to push out some small branchlets. Leaves are starting to drift down from the maples and alders. There are small spots of bright color on the forest floor and on the meadow.

            Many creatures are starting to feel in their hearts the urge to prepare for the cold time. Some burrows are being refurbished. Nests in the trees have gotten shabby. The fledglings have flown and heck, some birds have flat-out gone South. Not the eagles, crows, or ravens. Maeve we have always with us.

            It’s a reflective time here in the BSNF. That’s a good thing. In our case, reflection really means thanks. If there were a couple of problems, well, they were soon corrected. Problems have a sort of unreality here.  They are like an ephemeral joke.

            We had some exciting times. The wedding of Ferdy and Constance of course. Millicent visited a couple of times. Billy O’Dear came by, and we got to know each other. There was Cherry’s birth party and in fact her birth was pretty exciting too. Really too much to mention in this short message.

            Ramona and I know that you human characters like to hear about our adventures and we’re happy that you do. It adds a little fillip to daily life. Plus, peaceful co-habitation of the earth is one of our main areas of interest and care.

            Love is the answer. We Forest People wish you all the very best.

A Name

 

            Later, after dinner, and negotiations with Jessie, Julia went outside to sit in the evening light. She just looked at the signs of the end of summer, the dry corn stalks rustling in a demure small breeze, a few bright leaves on the ground, she listened for the river’s whoosh.  All good.
            As it grew darker, Julia noticed two glowing golden eyes not too far away. She smiled. She had no fear.

            “I see you over there,” said Julia from her seat on the steps. “I welcome you.”  

            The shining eyes moved a little closer.  She heard soft breathing, with a little rumble thrown in, like a huge purr. In the chilly evening air, she could almost feel the warmth of the great cat’s body radiating out.

            “What should I call you?” asked Julia.
            “Well, now,” said a soft deep voice, “you’re a strange one, Julia.  No one has ever asked me that before. There is a word the people use. Náshdóítsoh. But, that is only what I am, not who I am.”
            “Who are you?” asked Julia, smiling there in the dark.
            “That’s for you to decide. How about that?” It seemed as if the great cat might be laughing a bit.
            “Would you allow me to name you?” said Julia, rather boldly.
            “I will,” said the cat. “When I see you again, you will have thought of a name that we will use between us. Even Julia Chee did not name me.” Then she turned and walked away into the night, silently on her great soft paws.
            The girl rose and went back into the house. She went to her room and got ready for bed. Thinking. She was beginning to think of a name.
 
            The next day was the first of September. Julia would have been entering the 9^th grade soon, if she was going.
            Arizona is one of those states that doesn’t require too much of homeschooling families, so it was an easy matter to just inform the school district of their intention to homeschool. In any case, the law only would obtain in Julia’s case for one more year.  After age 16, there is no legal requirement to attend school or do it yourself in Arizona.
            The state does require that the normal subjects be studied. An easy matter.
            Julia’s freedom was easily accomplished.
 
            The matter of the cat’s name was much on her mind. She was thinking of Shiadi, older sister. Or maybe Shima’, aunt. But those weren’t really names exactly. Of course,  Julia spoke some Navajo, though she was mostly an English speaker.
            The word dina’, the Navajo word for to last or endure kept coming back to her mind. It itself endured. So, Julia began to think of the mysterious puma as Dina. Dina who always came back. She who persists. In some way, always there. Julia didn’t really understand why that name came to her so strongly.
           
            On the first day of the school year Julia stood up at the top of the driveway and watched the yellow bus drive by without picking her up. She felt very free. So many of the attendant small annoyances of school life would be her problem no more.
            Jessie came out of the house, ready to drive in to his shop and start his day.
            “Would you like to come to the shop with me today?” he asked Julia. He almost said “Emmy.” Beth and Jessie both still thought of her as Emmy.
            “Okay, maybe I can help or something,” she said.
 

            Jessie’s shop wasn’t really like a furniture store, though the door was unlocked so people could come in and maybe order something. Most of his customers learned of his work by word of mouth, or from an internet site that Julia had built for him. Almost all of his pieces had to be shipped. He was getting some notice with designers and high-end customers. He did very fine work, and was improving all the time, becoming quite a designer himself.
            The simple sign on the building, which he rented, said only “Nez’ Custom Cabinetry.”
           
            Father and daughter rode through the brilliant morning light toward Joseph city in  amiable silence. Then he said, “well, how do you feel?”
            “I’m happy, dad. Very happy. School wasn’t horrible, but it seems like such a waste of time. So much of it was just moving people around and business like lunch,” mused Julia. “I know there’s supposed to be a social aspect, but I don’t feel like I need that. I know people. We will still see each other.”
            “That’s right,” said Jessie. “None of us are joiners. Soon I think we should tell you the whole story of how we all ended up down here in Arizona in my old aunt’s mobile home.  It’s quite a story, Julia. It’s a little scary. It’s also complicated.”
            “Oh, some of that leaked out, dad, but I do want to hear the whole story.”
            “By the way, I’ll tell you something. It didn’t scare me, which is odd, really, but in the cold light of day it sounds crazy.  You know, a couple nights ago I went out and sat on the steps as the sun was going down, just happy because you guys said I could homeschool and use my real name.  While I was sitting there, I notice some yellow shining eyes nearby. I know how weird this sounds, but we talked.  This big mountain lion puma talked to me! I just sat there and talked with her.  I know it was a female, I’m not sure how, but she just seemed female.
            “There.  Is that nuts enough for you?” said Julia, looking earnestly at Jessie as he drove.
            “Well,” laughing a little, “I’ve heard something like that before.  Don’t worry. You’re not crazy. But, that is another complicated story. It has to do with my aunt.  Now you will think I am crazy, so we’re even. The puma would appear sometimes when we couldn’t find Julia Chee, and then disappear and Julia would turn up. Yeah. Sounds crazy! What did it mean? We were not absolutely sure about anything when it came to that lady, still aren’t.
            “Any how this puma seemed to be a guardian somehow. But since Aunt Julia disappeared the last time, we haven’t seen the big cat at all!” said Jessie.
            “I asked her what I should call her, and she said no one had ever asked her that before. Then I said could I name her, and she said I could. Then she said she would see me again and I would have a name.  Then she vanished into the night.  Spooky. But not scary,” said Julia.
            Jessie parked the old blue pickup in front of his shop.  After he parked he turned to his daughter and said, “I wonder if it has anything to do with a name. Your name. Julia?”
            “Well, let’s go in and see what’s to be done this day, my dear,” said Jessie Nez.

All 55, 687 words of it.

First Day Of September Sunday Open Thread

 

Such a beautiful month.

So happy to see it arriving.

A break from summer's riot.

Rest and reflection.

The Aster is September's flower.

The Sapphire is September's stone. 

I wish us all the best of everything.

Happy Sunday!