A Silver Day

· by · in Perspective, Summer, Uncategorized. ·
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Fijian Hare’s foot Fern

I awoke this morning with silver on my mind. Silver linings, silver bells, silver spoons but mostly, silver days.

Soft rain was falling; the cool breath of morning sighed through the ginger leaves outside my window. The wonder of silvery light, so gentle on newly opened eyes, helped chase the shades of a disturbed sleep from my thoughts.

Sunny days and the strong light of subtropical climes are the norm here in the Northern Rivers area. Overcast skies and gentle rain are a novelty. In summer it seems it’s either hot and sunny or hosing tropical downpours. So on lazy silver Saturdays like this I make a purposeful decision to enjoy them. Besides which, days have colours for me – sometimes blue, sometimes golden, but silver ones are special.

Reviewing the changes in my garden after a busy week away from it, I marvelled at how the light changes everything. Rain changes everything. Water and light drip from grateful foliage in equal measures. The reflective  qualities are enhanced and everywhere I look I see silver.

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Rain kissed  Mendinilla Myreantha

Now you may view these photos and dispute my colour perception. Understandable. But for me the silver light renders the various shades of green in  more subtle and gentler ways. If I could hear these colours, they would sound like silvery temple bells.

Because I choose to perceive them this way.

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.”
― W.B. Yeats

In far northern hemisphere climes, grey days and rare sunshine often translate to a longing for solar rays and sometimes can even lead to mood disorders (Seasonal Affective Disorder).

Equally, I can report from my own experience how the days of heat and high humidity make some people a little crazy. The summer monsoonal months in far northern Australia when the humidity is almost unbearable are referred to as The Suicide Season.

But what is my point you might ask? Well, I never really know myself until I have thought it out on paper. Perhaps my point is one of perception. Perhaps I want to say that we must remember that how we view the world around us is a choice. For some, today may be a grey day, for me it is silver because I’ve deemed it so and I wanted to share this silver lining with you.

That’s not to say if the rain continues for weeks on end the silver won’t become a little tarnished, maybe even turn to grey. I’m as susceptible to weather –  exterior and interior –  as the next person.

“Who are YOU?” said the Caterpillar … Alice replied, rather shyly, “I–I hardly know, sir, just at present– at least I know who I WAS when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.”
(Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Chapter 5)

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Reflective foliage of Magnolia Little Gem

 

39 responses to “A Silver Day”

    • Hello Rustic, (I hope that’s correct),do you think there is a clear connection between colour and mood beyond the symbolic one of colour expressing our interior weather? Why do different colours resonate with different people? My favourite colour is blue.

      Liked by 1 person

      • I think so, at least there is a clear link between a color we see everyday and our mood. That’s why the color of the walls at home is so important. Blue it is! That’s my favorite as well!

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  4. I love what I see as muted light. (Is that what you call silver?) The colours seem so much richer, yet more ephemeral.

    And I’m totally in accord with your not knowing what you think until you’ve thought it out on paper. I’m one of those who never know what they think until they hear what they say.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Yes. You have it. light refracted through rain and mist creates this I think. I like your word ‘ephemeral’- it describes this quality perfectly.
      I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks in this unconventional (?) way. It’s almost like channelling. Is that too freaky?

      Liked by 1 person

      • Not at all. One morning I got out of bed (never an easy task for me, I’m not a morning person), and a little voice was saying in my head “I was born in the stable where my mother had employment…” and I thought OMG, I’m channelling a cat. I did my best to ignore it, but it persisted and I thought, wot the hell, you don’t have a day job, give said cat full rein. Channelling’s the way to go.

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      • Ha ha! I like it. Sometimes those persistent voices are the ones I’ve tuned out in the past. No-one wants to admit they hear voices – right? But now I listen a little more attentively and have learned so much.

        Liked by 1 person

  5. Yes, our personal perception becomes our view of the world around us. My experience of perception has been exemplified by my photography interest — what some may see as a fairly boring scene may contain bright, shiny objects in my own eyes. When I started the climb up the range to Toowoomba this morning, my thoughts went back to my childhood — further enhanced because that typical Toowoomba weather was waiting for me — it was 15 degrees and fog like pea soup. Brief conversations with people at the service station reminded me again of perception, often influenced by the regularity of something. In this case, the temperature — I found it to be exhilarating to be somewhere that was free of humidity; the person I spoke to was feeling cold, and thought it odd that I would actually enjoy it. Great post again Robyn.

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    • Kim I love Toowoomba. It reminds me so much of my birth state of Victoria. Pea- soupers were such a mysterious treat when we were kids. It was only when I began to drive that they lost there appeal.
      I can see how photography would sharpen your perception. I think writing, painting or anything that requires your full attention (or getting into the Flow) serves that purpose. Your photographs give great insight into how you see the world. Glad you enjoyed the post. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. I love the concept of changing grey to silver, whether it be in what we see or how we feel. Perhaps mindfulness or gratiude are keys to the colour change.
    Kim – having also grown up in Toowoomba, I can relate to what was once seen as grey – the cool weather – now being enjoyably silver on my infrequent visits.

    Liked by 1 person

  9. I’d never thought of such days as silver days before. I can imagine exactly the kind of thing you mean from your description of them. They do sound very beautiful, everything glistening in the sunlight.

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