Hoping to win the drawing

Slow down, enjoy

Pine (with corn)

Depression

This is what I imagine depression might seem like to some. Yes, there's a pretty scene right there, but there is also something that obscures nearly all but one narrow, jagged slice of clarity, preventing full enjoyment.

A walk in the wetlands

Beauty in the simple things, 3

Soybeans waiting to be harvested and a very old fence post.

Beauty in the simple things, 2

A fence that has seen better days.

Beauty in the simple things, 1

Field corn early on a clear October morning.

Corn Therapy

Photo taken with iPhone 8 Plus in Portrait mode.

Terri and I were tent campers until last year. We bought a trailer and got away in it when we could.

Then we found a very nice family-run campground less than an hour from home that is on the Kankakee River and behind a farm. It's a beautiful piece of property and the regulars are a good group. We thought we'd leave the camper there for a month this summer and, after two weeks, decided we would become seasonal regulars too.

We go there quite often. The peaceful drive is through flat Illinois farm country. And the campground itself is sealed off from the main road noise by a good-sized field of corn. In fact, the entry drive is a corn tunnel this year-- with both east and west fields growing corn. Next year, soybeans again.

While there, we often walk. The walk through that corn tunnel can be very hot in July and August. But Monday night it was cool as summer gives way to fall and the vibrant green cornstalks turn brown and loosen their grip on the field corn within. It won't be long until the fields are fully harvested and await winter. That will be a melancholy day. But that's kind of what I like about autumn. It's a time to reflect-- enjoy what just happened and look forward to what's ahead. It truly is therapy.