Goodbye Summer

tanjabrittonwriter 67 Comments

Goodbye to summer heat.

You scorch the earth

And sap humans and animals alike.

Servus Sommer

Du versengst die Erde

Und laugst Menschen und Tiere gleichermaßen aus.

So long to colorful blossoms.

You delight the senses

And provide a feast to connoisseurs of nectar.

Auf Wiedersehen Ihr farbigen Blüten

Ihr erfreut die Sinne

Und bereitet ein Fest für Nektarfeinschmecker.

To enlarge a photo, click on it. To read its caption, hover cursor over it.

Zum Vergrößern, das Bild bitte anklicken. Um den Titel zu lesen, mit der Maus darüber schweben.

Harebell/Rundblättrige Glockenblume
Nodding Onion/Nickender Lauch
Scarlet Gilia (aka Fairy Trumpet)/? deutscher Name

Adieu to gossamer-winged creatures.

You beautify any estival day

And enthrall by your fairy-like appearance.

Adieu Ihr zartbeflügelten Kreaturen

Ihr verschönt jeden Sommertag

Und bezaubert mit Eurer elfenartigen Präsenz.

Western Tiger Swallowtail/Westlicher Tigerschwalbenschwanz
Black Swallowtail/Schwarzer Schwalbenschwanz

Farewell to furry faces.

You incessantly labor in anticipation of winter

And your charm never fails to lift our sprits.

Machts gut ihr Pelzgesichter

Ihr arbeitet unermüdlich auf den Winter zu

Und Euer Charme macht immer gute Laune.

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel/Goldmantelziesel
Chipmunk/Streifenhörnchen

Adios also to some feathered friends.

You wake us with heavenly notes before dawn

And gladden our hearts all the livelong day.

Lebt wohl unsere gefiederten Freunde

Ihr weckt uns vor Anbruch des Tages

Und erfreut uns den lieben langen Tag.

Blue Grosbeak/Azurbischof
Lark Sparrow (one of my favorite sparrows)/Rainammer

Goodbye Summer—Welcome Autumn.

Auf Wiedersehen Sommer—Herzlich Willkommen Herbst.

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With apologies to my fellow bloggers in the southern hemisphere, who are currently reveling in vernal awakening.

Ich bitte meine Bloggerfreunde auf der südlichen Halbkugel um Verzeihung. Ich bin mir bewußt, daß Ihr momentan im Frühlingserwachen schwelgt.

67 thoughts on “Goodbye Summer”

  2. Love all the different colours, patterns, shapes and textures! I really enjoyed them after having been briefly outside in the cold this evening trying to photograph the snow coming down. Yes that’s right.. snow falling again! Stuff never happens neatly within its allotted season here.. so much for spring!

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  3. Liebe Tanja, wunderschöne Bilder zu einem wunderschönen Text, der ein wenig Wehmut in mir erzeugt. Ja, der Sommer ist gegangen und nun kommt der Herbst. Aber vielleicht wird er golden und erfreut uns gleichermaßen mit seinem eigenen Charme!  Alles Liebe, Ulrike

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  7. It is bittersweet to say goodbye to a season, especially if we are able to get views as wonderful as yours. But you have captured some moments so beautifully, so it will “always” be summer whenever I view this post 🙂 Wishing you a very happy autumn ❤

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  9. I was surprised to see Latin Servus as the first word in your German. Then I realized it corresponds to the old tradition in English-language letter writing of closing with a phrase like “I remain your humble servant.”

    You may or may not be thrilled to hear that large sunflower heads like the ones in your opening photograph are prime exemplars of a mathematical relationship called the Fibonacci sequence. If in a moment of leisure you’d like to learn a little about that, I found a video done by a guy who gives a pretty good explanation while speaking with a German accent. (It took me a minute to figure out he was saying buds and not butts!)

    The theme of your post reminded me of Rilke’s poem “Herbsttag”:

    Herr, es ist Zeit. Der Sommer war sehr groß.
    Leg deinen Schatten auf die Sonnenuhren,
    und auf den Fluren lass die Winde los.

    Befiehl den letzten Früchten, voll zu sein;
    gib ihnen noch zwei südlichere Tage,
    dränge sie zur Vollendung hin, und jage
    die letzte Süße in den schweren Wein.

    Wer jetzt kein Haus hat, baut sich keines mehr.
    Wer jetzt allein ist, wird es lange bleiben,
    wird wachen, lesen, lange Briefe schreiben
    und wird in den Alleen hin und her
    unruhig wandern, wenn die Blätter treiben.

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    • I am always grateful to learn something new about my choice of words I didn’t know before you analysed it, Steve. I had never thought about the etymology of the word “Servus.”

      While I watched the video, I didn’t understand all of it, but I grasped enough to be duly impressed by the wonderful order of Mother Nature, both with regard to buds and butts. 🙂

      Thank you also for sharing Rilke’s evocative fall poem. I think I will return to my desk now to to practice rhyming.

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      • Das ist schön, liebe Jutta. Der Juni und Juli waren relativ naß, aber im August und September hat es so gut wie nicht geregnet, und auch die Temperaturen waren überdurchschnittlich hoch. Das streßt natürlich Tier und Mensch. So langsam kühlt es ab, aber Regen haben wir leider noch immer nicht in Aussicht.
        Aber wenn ich so ansehe, welche Katastrophen es in manchen Gebieten gibt, will ich mich nicht beschweren. An die Hitze und Trockenheit werden wir uns wahrscheinlich alle gewöhnen müssen-leider!
        Liebe Grüße, auch an den Steve.
        Tanja

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  18. A lovely combination of words and images — and you sneaked in that wonderful word ‘estival’ as a bonus! I was looking at the National Weather Service radar out of Key West this morning, and was astonished by the thousands of migrating birds they’d picked up. Locally, it’s the broadwinged hawks showing up on radar. While we go about our business, nature is going about hers.

    Summer seems to have ended especially quickly this year. You’ve done a fine job of catching it before its final departure.

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    • Thank you for your kind comment, Linda, and for picking up on this fun word, estival. Ever since I learned that some animals estivate, as opposed to hibernate, I try to use the word family any chance I get. 😊

      Isn’t it astounding how many activities in nature go completely unnoticed by humans? If it weren’t for the radar, very few people would be aware of the hawks’ migration. Since most birds migrate at night, most of us miss this amazing avian activity in the sky.

      Happy autumn to you!

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  25. Thank you, Tanja, for such a poetic view of the demise of summer. It’s not my favorite time of year, but your post reminds us that every change of season is an opportunity to be thankful for what we’ve had.

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    • Thank you, Andy!
      Summer is not my favorite season either, especially because of the attendant heat, but I love it for the vibrancy of both plant and animal life, and the beauty of the night, replete with stars and the songs of crickets.

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  26. What a lovely farewell to summer! I almost teared up when I read the 3 lines about furry faces. The 3 lines about feathered friends also pulled at my heartstrings. And then “reveling in vernal awakening” made me chuckle. Great word combination! And your bird photos are particularly wonderful! 😊

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