Right Here, Right Now

The first glorious days of fall have arrived in My Florida Backyard. The morning and evening temperatures have begun dropping into the low 70s and upper 60s, and sitting outside is once again a pleasure. This evening is a delightful one to be spending on the back porch, and we thought we'd try to share a little of it with you.

The picture really doesn't express the peacefulness of the scene, or the amount of nature and wildlife that's present. Every few minutes, a splash on the lake indicates a duck or two coming in for a landing. Two tri-colored herons are fishing along the shore, and occasionally the hoarse cry of one informs the other one that he's getting a little too close for comfort. A mother Muscovy duck herded ten ducklings down the lake a few minutes ago, and overhead a flock of ibis flew south, no doubt headed for their rookery for the night.

The breeze is soft and cool at last, and the air smells fresh. The sky is cloudless, slowly deepening from cream to the color of ashes-of-rose, and the sound of cicadas in the distance has just begun. Moths are beginning to nectar on the white pentas and lantana in the garden, which seem to take on a glow along with the sky. Soon the evening star will appear, and the great blue heron standing still as a statue on the far end of the lake will take to the sky, off to bed along with the sun.

There's nothing particularly exciting, nothing new, nothing unexpected. It's just the peace of one of the first cool evenings after a long hot summer, and the promise of many more evenings like this one to come. Every moment is different, and every moment is the same. Right here, right now, there is no other place we'd rather be than My Florida Backyard.

P.S. The cat agrees.