Sunday 2 October 2011

Flying on a Heatwave, in October

This cornflower blue sky
these corn yellow wheat fields
this blushing pink skin
of cloud -

this is it.


 © Shaista Tayabali, 2011

I tried to photograph the sun today, the green and the red and the gold of it. I tried to capture the inexplicable flying elephantness of it - the unexpectedness of it, this heatwave in autumn. To you reading this in the heat, there is nothing surprising. To you in the cold, you are trying to recall summer gone by. To those of us in England, settling in for months of grey, hooray hooray, until next time, hooray!
first photo courtesy htc, second via Tess Kincaid for Magpie tales

27 comments:

Kathe W. said...

Your photo is brilliant - love it and your words! Especially the "inexplicable flying elephantness of it "

ah the fleeting heat of summer- we never really had summer this year-wet and cool here in Oregon and in Scotland when we visited our friends near Inverness...makes for a green tomato summer.

christopher said...

We call this Indian Summer on this side of the pond.

Tess Kincaid said...

I've heard about your unexpected wave of warmth! Fall has settled into Central Ohio and I am not complaining...

Shaista said...

Thanks Kathy - although I didn't take it! It's one of those supercool free photos you get on htc mobile... the words are mine though ;)

Christopher - if it's autumn and hot, is it still called an Indian Summer? Bit of an oxymoron 'Indian Summer'... there aren't any summers in India, just year round heat and the monsoon season!

A Cuban In London said...

What a glorious photo that first one is! Many thanks. Loving the weather but also missing the nippiness of the autumn mornings. :-)

Greetings from London.

steven said...

my mum's in egnland right now and i keep wondering if she packed for summer or autumn!!! a lovely poem and image shaista. you see right to the heart. steven

Kay L. Davies said...

A perfect Magpie!

Kay, Alberta, Canada
An Unfittie’s Guide to Adventurous Travel

Maggie May said...

i love this post...heatwaves..color..unexpected flight

Sherry Blue Sky said...

I so love the elephant with wings.........the weather, she is a-changing.....she is so strange....but you have to enjoy the heat, however you come by it, the gray skies will settle in soon enough - they already have over here.

JJ Roa Rodriguez said...

That first pic is gorgeous... And the take for this prompt, wow!

JJRod'z

Cloudia said...

an elephant may fly on wings of creativity!


Warm Aloha from Waikiki;

Comfort Spiral



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Ann Grenier said...

A beautiful response to the prompt. I love your photo of sky and water as well.

Tumblewords: said...

Lovin' the words!

Chronicles of Illusions said...

love the take on the theme

chiccoreal said...

Dear Shiasta:

Love how your imagination sweeps me into your poem! Imaginative sky!

Helen said...

... the elephantness of it ~ I love reading it, saying it aloud.

Maxwell Mead Williams Robinson Barry said...

creative.

Thanks for the extended story.

Brian Miller said...

ah it is nice and cool here today...the great flying elephant of the sun will hopefully return tomorrow...smiles. nice pic!

Marcoantonio Arellano (Nene) said...

I think 'Indian summer' is in reference to the Indian family (of which I'm part of, Aztec) in this side of the pond. I believe it's in reference to agricultural conditions.

A said...

Beautiful images! I like colors but I love grays too.

Shaista said...

Nene, I never realised the reference was to Native American Indians :) It makes sense now!

Roy Schulze said...

Lovely photo, plus a playful and loose connection to the Magpie photo. I may have just finished the last barbecue here in Toronto, so I am all too aware of that feeling of impending gloom. If you're curious. my Magpie 85 is Topsy.

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful blog you have!

Nice take on the photographs Shaista....

Isabel Doyle said...

great response to the prompt
hope you are keeping well
Isabel x

Shaista said...

Here's a great quote from the character Leon Tallis in Ian McEwan's novel Atonement:

'I love England in a heatwave. It's a different country. All the rules change'.

Ruth said...

How beautiful (including that quote of McEwan's).

So happy to post the children's illustrations, including your beloved Pooh Bear, on granny grampa day! And also to introduce you to George McDonald's At the Back of the North Wind. His novels have been hugely inspiring and mind-changing in my life.

24h Pfleger said...

OH my! what an awesome photo.

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