I love to lie in bed, barely awake, and watch the sweetbay magnolia outside the bedroom window light up as the sun rises over the treeline and suddenly bathes it in gold. At this time in October, it starts about 7:10 and within five minutes, the glossy leaves are shining in yellow sunlight.
On the back hill, the persimmon is lit up too. There it is, finally looking tree-like, rising up out of the weeds and shining.
This is the tiny sapling I brought home on the plane from Kentucky, and planted in 2007. Now, in its 5th year, it looks like a real tree.
The Alba Luxurians clematis is in just the right spot to be lit by a slanted ray of morning light each day (well, each sunny day, and there have been so few.) It just looks like a big wedding bouquet!
