Autumn wander among twisted forest pandani, fagus leaves, and moss.. a little collection. part one.
It’s not often these days that I feel I can get away on a weekday off to soak in some seasonal colours. Just last week was among burnt sienna rust colour copper and charred.. colours commonly seen in autumn however they were the devastation of bushfires which ravaged Takayna/tarkine this summer…over 90,000 hectares.. so while everyone was flocking to the start of the turning of the fagus, I couldn’t help but be in contemplative mode about flocking to document what may continue to manifest due to climate change.. For some reason, it just didn’t feel right at the time to dash to Cradle Mountain…
However, this day last week was not that day — it was actually International Midwives Day.. a day off from work.. so one of my midwife friends claire and I decided to go with our pre-planned jaunt for the day to see what we could find. I was almost expecting the winds and rain to arrive and for us to be hammered by the elements, and was thinking that we would be lucky if we arrived before all the leaves blew away. To our surprise it was an almost perfectly mostly-cloudy mild day, the storm holding off for 5 hours. We kind of lucked out. Note another reminder to self of not having any expectations! We decided on a short-walk, so both started on a track that neither of us have been on before.. and surely won’t be my last time.. since of course we quite didn’t make it longer than a kilometre I reckon! There was much to see and stop at.. first all the fungi.. and then walking a bit higher into the forest, the fagus! Sometimes I find that with camera in hand the beauty around me — whether it’s a stunning rainforest, old mossy trees, surrounded by colourful fagus leaves, snowing around wombats, aurora dancing, epic sunrises with moody fog, flowy waterfalls, and so on, I start to feel a tad overwhelmed.. either then start hyperfocusing on the tiny elements, such as crouching down in weird positions to set up the tripod or something to anchor the camera onto for a steady shot or focus stack on the tiniest of fungi, or the tiny world of moss and abundant life about the size of my thumb.. or, spend a long time in one spot, different angles of a similar composition, until it feels “just right”.. even if it doesn’t turn out the way I was hoping it would. I am okay with feeling disappointed because there’s also an element of joy and curiosity in learning..
Nothofogus gunnii
- deciduous beech endemic to Lutruwita/Tasmania. Growing in alpine and subalpine regions only, on mountains in the unique climate here, usually above 800m above sea level. I have read that apparently the Conservation status of Nothofagus gunnii is “Near Threatened”, reported by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)
So, here’s a little compilation of the turning of the fagus, autumn glory amongst a magical sweet pandani and myrtle forest, ancient twisty branches overarching everywhere, roots growing out in every direction, a knarly wonderland of ancient native forest alive with fungi galore. Maybe this was the one and only day I’ll see the autumn fagus this year. Often each season goes by and I tend to miss it. When actually I wish I could be out amongst it all much more often. A photographer’s dream. Just to watch the light change, metamorphosing and casting a warm glow or soft & dreamy touch, as the light changes so do the leaves, fungi, plants, shapes, animals, flowers.. so, this time am taking a moment to share, rather than having them remain stagnant in the old memory cards and hard drives, forgotten about, like literally thousands of other image files. Someday I’ll do something with them.
Seasons’ change seems to sometimes correlate with and reflect changes in our own lives.. well, I can really only speak for myself here.. I definitely am feeling the autumn season change deeply.. as if something is literally crumbling, floating, falling away within me.. change is in the air.. I can’t quite touch it yet, but feeling something is on the cusp of happening.. and change needs to happen.. stagnancy feels about as uncomfortable as uncertainty… even though, when wading in the sea of uncertainty, it is an opportunity to dig even deeper and listen in more to what we need to do, what to allow to fall away, in order to move forward. It is not easy, yet I see this is as a vehicle to movement.. of letting go of things like self-criticism, fear of what others’ think.. that is key in all of this.. in every arena.. So, how do you honour the change in seasons within you? I’m seeing one of my Ayurvedic doctors this week when she comes to visit Penguin.. we’ll address what I can feel manifesting physically and emotionally, almost a unison of nature’s elements and inner workings. Dry skin as suddenly just ‘there’, definitely Vata season of life.. although I have dealt with vata++ all my life…!.. Yoga and Ayurvedic nourishment is in store to aid in this yet another transition.
We shed what no longer serves us.. like little leaves they simply fall away.. inviting the next season. Mud doesn’t stick forever, with a bit of flow it loosens up, thins out and washes away. Might be a bit cold for a little while, but then a bit of green life starts bursting forth again. It’s a good thing.
