November 30 - The last of the leaves are going

A windy wet day and the leaves are flying. Mostly they come from another large oak, just to the left of the picture, that has more leaves on it than ours. It was dark dramatic light with the whole wood glowing with duns, and browns and oranges and just under the oak tree there was a white horse. Waiting to be mounted and to take the rider will-he nill he off to somewhere dramatic. The king of the Goblins or somewher of the kind. All very mythical and strange.

I'm pretty much used to the woods now but yesterday they seemed really dark and mysterious and reminded me of the scene in Disney's Snow White where she runs through the trashing trees. I still remember though I probably saw the film almost 70 years ago.

We were talking of trees and myth with the tree panjandrums yesterday. Bryan mentioned this book called The White Goddess by Robert Graves and I've been thinking about a poem by him about trees while I've been working on this blog. It's called "A boy in church" and ends with the memorable last verse about trees. (The title is a link.)

It’s pleasant here for dreams and thinking, Lolling and letting reason nod, With ugly serious people linking Sad prayers to a forgiving God…. But a dumb blast sets the trees swaying With furious zeal like madmen praying.

Anyway yesterday seemed very mysterious. Here is a picture that seems to show the last leaf being blown off the very top of our tree.

And here, to lighten up a bit, is a link to Panjandrum, a word that comes from a nonsense poem by Samuel Foote Perhaps a day like this is a day for "playing catch-as-catch-can till the gunpowder runs out of our heels".