After the Rain

This morning as I walked by the shore, I was aware of how incredible the colors are the morning after a rainstorm.

Yesterday was a classic stormy day. The sky was a deep slate all day and the rain never let up. It was a day for hot chocolate and hunkering down. I was fortunate in that my niece (freshly home from California by way of NYC) had come up from Portland for a weekend visit, so I had good company! We chatted, watched movies and did a lot of laughing. Other than her quick visit to Wasses Hot Dogs (the famous Rockland delectable) we stayed put - warm and dry... It was a day to ignore the out of doors ... so going out this morning felt like seeing the world anew. Every color was pumped as every object and surface - washed by yesterday's rain - gleamed in the early morning sun. It was one of those visual experiences impossible to capture because part of it's charm is the contrast to the day before! I'm not sure if the colors seem more intense because they are set against a brilliant blue sky - or because the rain actually revitalizes the foliage, but the end result is delicious. Every orange, red, gold and green seems to be supersaturated. Shadows are in tones of Cobalt and Indigo and form exotic patterns everywhere. It is one of those days when you FEEL the color  - not just see it! It is like Harvest personified. Days like these I feel enormously grateful - I may not be rich, or famous, or powerful, or whatever measures a "successful" life, but I am incredibly blessed to live with such incredible beauty at my doorstep!