Today is bright, the light golden and warm beneath a turquoise sky. The edge is off the chill now, at least until next Thursday, iff the forecast is to be believed.
And while we know that these unseasonal temperatures are not a good sign, direct result of climate change that they are, for us they are a blessing now. We have outdoor weatherizing tasks to complete before real winter sets in, the kind that require work in multiple stages over the course of many days, and a mercury near sixty is a gift.
We may be able to get it all done yet.
Of course, the trade-off is real: no precipitation for an earth increasingly dry and arid. It’s no good thing, and we recognize that our momentary good fortune comes at the expense of a greater balance.
And so we scramble to get as much done as quickly as possible, hoping to be able soon to pray for rain. At this season, it’s more likely to be snow, of course, and that’s what the forecast for next week suggests, but it all comes down to water in the end.
Snow; rain; water. Preservation, shield, shelter of a sort: the first medicine, backlit by the autumn light, protecting an earth in balance, and us with it.
Today’s featured work is one of my personal favorites, the very embodiment of autumn rain and light. From its description in the Earrings Gallery here on the site:
Sunlit Rain Earrings
Summer’s end is the season of sunlit rain, of cloud-webbed turquoise skies and golden light filtered through the drops. With these earrings, Wings pairs Skystone and citrine to invoke the illuminating power and medicine of the last of the monsoons. Each dangling drop is formed of a triangular cabochon of richly-hued turquoise, likely from Arizona’s Turquoise Mountain, each a graceful blend of sky blues and emerald greens, infused with shimmer gold- and bronze-colored matrix. Each sits in a scalloped bezel trimmed with twisted silver, poised above three round citrine cabochons — translucent like the rain, glowing like tiny suns. The backing for the citrine cabochons and the bails through which the jump rings at the top attach all extend organically from a single piece of silver, cut and filed entirely freehand; the drops dance from sterling silver wires. Earrings are 1.5″ long by 3/4″ to a 7/8″ across at the widest point; citrine cabochons are 3/16″ across (dimensions approximate).
Sterling silver; natural blue-green American turquoise (likely Turquoise Mountain); citrine
$775 + shipping, handling, and insurance
At the moment, the air is dry as ash and bone: filled with static electricity, an atmosphere so perfectly arid that it feels as though a single spark could ignite a conflagration. It’s not unusual at this season, but the dangers are greater now.
And so, as we take advantage of the unusual warmth and the shimmering light, still we pray for the protection of the rain, sunlit or otherwise. At this moment, the remedy for our small world here, so clearly out of balance, is the first medicine.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2019; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.
