One of the things daughter Kate wanted to do was go on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It’s about 15 minutes from our house, so it was an easy request to grant. That’s probably why we left it until last, making me a bit nervous. We waited for grandson David to get home from work. Late afternoon was a wonderful time to be up there. The sun hit at an interesting angle, and most of the tourists had left for the day. One of my favorite places is Looking Glass Rock. The outcropping shines reflectively as the sun shines on it when it is wet or iced.
A zoomed image shows the rock.
I spotted fancy wild flowers, colored a bit like tiger lilies. The blooms looked as if they had been turned inside out.
The internet provided a closeup photo and the name – Turk’s Cap Lily.
Earlier in the day, Nathaniel knew where to find a ruler when the subject was the width of a hand span. Kate’s hand on the ruler might be a bit smaller than mine. I envied Nate’s from the time he was 12 years old. Reaching octaves on the piano would have been so much easier if I’d had an extra half inch. Now his hand spans a whopping 9.5 inches. Can you imagine what it would be like, instead of stretching, to contract your hand to fit an octave???
Mehrling Muse 
Love the lilies like Turkish caps. I recall the Blue Ridge Parkway when we traveled there as children. Hand span for a pianist is important. I could reach ten keys but only by playing them on the edge. Now our son has piano playing hands and did Rachmaninoff justice at one of his later recitals. Enjoyed the post! Happy music making weekend.
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Are you off for the summer, music wise?
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Most of my music groups have a break until early Sept. The church choir sings on. We used to recite parts of the Mass instead of singing them for the summer and sometimes we still adhere to that, even with the new Pastor. Next summer will be different since both my husband and I will sing with the Berkshire Choral International in Prague Aug. 4-11, 2019. How about you? Do you take a break?
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Choir will resume for John in September. I’ve been cooking and looking after guests all summer, barely having time to keep up with the blog. We have another month with the grandsons here, and they’ll head for college. I plan to take a day off in September.
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We need days off. After all, God rested on the 7th day. With our weather these days, I have had to water the new plants in the garden and the bushes after the latest round of landscaping. I want to take some time off as well. Yes, a retiree needs a change of scenery. I thought Maine or a mountain cabin. Remote and rural sounds pretty good about now. Time to simply BE and recharge the creative batteries before the 2018-19 rehearsal season begins in earnest. Enjoy your company.
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I hope you get a few days in a lovely place to recharge.
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You as well. Solitude and solace in nature is what I seek.
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Those flowers were pretty, never seen any like that. Love the shot of the mountain. I have a large handspan for a short girl. I used to play the piano a little, but my true love was the guitar. I gave it all up long aho though.
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I’ll bet larger hands would help with guitar-playing, too. I tried it, but I never practiced enough to get callouses. It was a painful exercise!
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Yes!
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We lived in Blue Ridge, Ga. just off of the parkway years ago. Beautiful place. I don’t have large hands either but blump fingers.LOL
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LOL!
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I’m envious of people who have big hands and feet- they’re so useful!
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If you had big feet, though, you’d look like a Hummel figurine.
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True and I’d be an even slower runner🤣
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Let’s not slow you down!
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9.5 inches- that is great. I am wondering if that will help with measurements while cooking. Does he play the piano too- as you said, it would be really helpful for a pianist. Do pianist’s fingers grow longer and thinner with playing ? I used have a classmate who played the piano and she had the longest most beautiful fingers.
The Blue Ridge Parkway as usual looked dressed at its best. Loved the upturned lilies and its orange colours- true fall colours, maybe ?
Susie
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If practicing made fingers grow longer, my span would be 12 inches! Nathaniel does not play the piano. He only plays CDs and MP3s.
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So its not true ? I always thought long thin fingers went with years of piano playing.
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I began piano lessons at age 6, and at 21 was practicing 3 hours a day. My little hands are only marginally larger than Kate’s.
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What a gorgeous view! I just love those lillies they grow well here, but waiting for mine to bloom. I love the piano but unfortunately I am not musical. 💗
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If you love the piano, that is the next best thing to playing. Appreciation ranks high in my book.
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What a great view of a beautiful area…lovely flowers too. A span of hand at 9.5 would be terrific. I love the photos of your family.
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I love seeing photos of something I’ve stood and looked at from the same vantage point. It rekindles all kinds of things from the past. Thanks for taking me there Anne.
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My hands could be the size of boat paddles and it wouldn’t matter.
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LOL!
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Very beautiful and scenic pictures Anne.
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