Summer just doesn’t seem to want to let go. Earlier in the week, the cooler nights were wonderful. I even dragged out the comforter but it’s warm out there right now. It’s supposed to feel like fall next week, with temperatures in the 60s. And the Farmer’s Almanac following the predictions of El Niño says we will have colder conditions.
But now it’s still summer. The political season is in full swing with nasty AI generated fraudulent images of this candidate or that. Anthropic announced that Claude, its AI robot is helping to build the next generation of AI whatevers. While we are rightfully concerned about AI’s possibility for evil, why doesn’t someone use Claude or other AI thinking machines to create new cures for diseases?
The cooler weather should make us start taking in the tender plants. The night blooming cereus plants on the deck, known in Asia as the moon flower has begun the once-a-year bloom. The fragrance emitted in its native tropics draw tropical bats and sphinx moths, although a very early bee will come before the sun hits the flower, when it begins to close up. Now, to find that pesky mosquito that got me last night.
Prayer for the Day
The gentle but strong breeze is a harbinger of what is to come,
Cooler nights, autumn rains, and harvests from the earth;
Even as summer holds on, O God, we can feel the change,
The transformation as creatures scurry about in preparation.
Fill us with gratitude for what we have from your hand,
For we know all gifts come from you, O Lord.
In the name of the One who teaches us to be thankful,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
The crickets felt it was their duty to warn everybody that summertime cannot last forever. Even on the most beautiful days in the whole year - the days when summer is changing into autumn - the crickets spread the rumour of sadness and change.
E.B. White, from Charlotte’s Web (1899-1985)
As the sunlit verdancy of summer artfully transforms into the gilded shades of autumn, a gentle symphony seems to envelop the natural world. A brief pause for a quiet listen to the air reveals that between the beautiful changes, the rustling leaves, and crawling breezes, small yet profoundly stirring moments are gracefully sprinkled everywhere.
Marie Helen Abramyan, American poet, songwriter
The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God lasts forever.
Isaiah 40: 8