Woodland Watcher

It's a crisp late-autumn afternoon. I make time for a stroll in Haw River woodlands near Bynum, North Carolina. Summer bird chatter is a distant memory. Except for my footfalls across thick carpets of fallen leaves, the mood is an eerie silence. I pause to adjust my camera neck strap. Within seconds the silence reaches into the primordial pool of my essence and raises an alarm born of ancient memories. Fine hairs on the back of my neck bristle. I sense a presence. Is it animal or woodland spirit? I ready my camera and turn slowly. Sunlight filtering through bare tree canopies distorts perceptions of reality. My heart races as I fix my gaze on what appear to be two eyes in a mass of pine straw deposited by recent wind storms on low hanging tree branches. I snap a photo.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Woodland Watcher

(Photo impressionism)

Primordial Purity

Sunlight gives essence born of primordial mud

A way to leave earthly attachments and desires

Cloaked as fleeting shadows on bright lotus bud.

Thusly mind, body and soul transcend life’s mires.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Primordial Purity
(Graffiti on old Highway 15 bridge at Bynum, North Carolina USA)

Abiding Remembrance

Late-November mists and rain dampen thoughts of outdoor activities and gently silence last songs of autumn. Sheltered from the chilled ambience which envelops city neighborhoods and woodlands, heart and soul reach out to mind’s eye. The conversation turns to remembrance of family values, artistic exploits, cultural diversity and spiritual journeys.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Abiding Remembrance

Thanksgiving In The Air

At dusk our town kicks off the 2018 holiday season with music, dance, food and lighting of the community Christmas tree at the historic Chatham County Court House. To the delight of children Santa stops by on his way to the North Pole. When Santa puts light to the tree, collective shouts of delight fill the crisp breath of night. Merchants along the main thoroughfare to the court house follow suit with illuminations of trees and store fronts. Stores, boutiques, art galleries and purveyors of antiques keep late hours, as shoppers peruse wares with gift-giving to special people in mind.

Temperature is in the fifties. Artificial snow machines help set a wintry mood. People mingle on street and courthouse grounds in festive frame of mind, while Christmas carols tug at heart strings and lift spirits. Four days hence families will gather once more for a uniquely American celebration, when young and old allow their hearts to dwell on kindness and thanksgiving for the good in their lives.

© Ilija Lukić 2018 

Community Spirit

(Pittsboro, North Carolina USA)

Making A List

(New Horizons Trading Company in Pittsboro, North Carolina USA)

Let There Be Light

Last weekend Cooper and I cannot resist the lure of autumn woodlands. I quest late afternoon poetry of light kaleidoscopes of foliage time and again conceive in mind's eye. Aesthetics aside and truth be told, Cooper just wants to ensure his wildlife playmates still thrive in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence flooding two months ago. Jordan Lake State Park is our destination. Where not long ago knee-deep lagoons inundate shoreline tree stands, we find leaf and pine needle-carpeted forest floors none the worse for ravages wrought by nature.

Since Saturday nearly four inches of additional rain threaten repeat flooding. As the forest readies once again to live through the darkness of the deep, "let there be light" echoes throughout our sun-dappled woodland cathedral.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Let There Be Light

(Cooper scouts riparian woodland at Jordan Lake, North Carolina USA) 

Sun-dappled Perfection

Divine Symphonies

Woodland withers regally

Dog days become leaf symphonies

Divine breath scribes music

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Divine Symphony
(Mary Holmes Park near Pittsboro North Carolina USA)

Autumn Lullabies

Autumn croons lullabies

Frosty nights embolden wintertide

Bliss fills Nature’s heart

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Nature's Heart
(Woodlands near Pittsboro, North Carolina USA)

Mind's Eye

In truth, mist-filled autumn airs wake mind’s eye,

Recapture moments from sublime mosaic of life,

Bespeak horseback exploits under endless sky

And marvel at Meteor Crater with newlywed wife.

Memories near to heart on untold strands of time

Celebrate anew daughters’ birth with plum brandy,

Recall saga of dragon and knight errant in rhyme

And quench thirst in Blue Corn Cafe quite rowdily

Why journey again down Will Rogers Highway,

Breakfast with truckers in family-owned diner,

Admire folk art, trek lofty Machu Picchu byway

Then evoke wisdom spoken by Cheyenne elder.

When hearts cherish memories of life’s voyage,

Each waypoint keepsake pays tangible homage.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Autumn Mists
(Late afternoon moods in Mary Holmes Park, Pittsboro NC USA)

Memory Lane
(Memorabilia at home in Pittsboro NC USA)

Autumn Finery

Without much ado or need for slight of hand,

Mother Nature abandons outback greenery,

Summer bids farewell in sunlit woodland,

While stillness presides over autumn finery.

© Ilija Lukić 2018

Loblolly Pine Allée
(Lake Jordan State Park woodland passage)

Bewitched

Look-see how flaxen hair spills sunlight

In content dance on velvet bosom realm,

While eyes bewitch akin to moonlit night

And rouse mind’s eye heart to overwhelm.

© Ilija Lukić 2018