Lotus Leaves

Look at this mosaic of lotus leaves.

They make a little wilderness of shelter, shade and shapes.

I love the enormous concave leaves.  They remind me of elephant ears, the way they flap in the wind.

Don't get lotus leaves mixed up with lily pads as I did at first.  Water lilies are in a different family altogether.  Lily pads have a cut in them, like a piece of pie that has been cut out, like this:

Lotus leaves have no such division, although when decaying, they may look as if they do.  Here are some lotus leaves beginning to decay, as the season fades.

When we were walking among these lotus plants on some docks off the Ben Butterworth Parkway, Hyperion noticed water droplets rolling around inside some of the leaves, forming and reforming.

They sparkled like gems and raced back and forth as the waves under the leaves rose and fell.

This one, in particular, looked like a perfect marble.  Note the spherical shape.

It reminded me of a ball of mercury, such as we used to play with in our high school chemistry class.  The natural world holds endless surprises.

Slate and Gold

The sun was new, and shining across the river.  Between us, there was a pathway of kindled light, like filigree glinting on the water.

Beads of luminescence blazed on the surface, rippling into molten pools of ore, like lava igniting a landscape.

The gilded surface reflected crescendos of light, making me wish I could trip the light fantastic through the cadence of the waves.

Greens and Oranges

Here are three more photos of the water.

These were taken of the surface of the river with my zoom lens.

The greens and oranges are not algae.  The colors comes from the reflections of the trees above, and a rusty barge anchored across the way.

Blues & Grays

The wind forms liquid sand dunes on the surface of the pond.

Troughs and ridges form and unform, like waxing and waning tessellations.

The play of shapes and colors mesmerize me, and I want to set sail in their concentric circles.