The Restory Retreat Centre

Every year I let the ash leaves slip by. I love using them as decoration on plates as they are simply the perfect leaf. It has a graceful and slender form, balanced perfectly in a “leaf hand” of five with two opposite pairs of leaves and a single terminal leaf. The vein structure and stems imprint beautifully onto clay. But while they sway in green abundance on the slender branches all Summer I hardly notice them! Until Autumn arrives. As they flutter down in their thousands in silly yellow abandon I gather them frantically, knowing they will soon be gone and I will have to wait until Spring. I have one plate to show. ONE. Matilda #leaves #autumn #ashleaves #yellow #lostchances #lettingitslipby #pottery #imprintsonclay

Still on the feel-good yellow theme, I baked a batch of Beskuit this morning. This is a traditional pantry favourite in South Africa: a hard, dry type of biscuit also known as Rusks which had been baked twice and gets dunked into a hot beverage such as coffee or tea before eating. If ever I compile a recipe book, it would go under the section: Comfort food.     The origin of this confectionery is uncertain, but it also strongly resembles what is known to Italians as Biscotti. The French word "biscuit" meaning "twice baked" casts some explanation as to where our Beskuit got its name.     There are as many recipes for Beskuit as there are families, it seems, and in some instances these recipes are guarded as family secrets, along with recipes for the best koeksisters and biltong and all such things proudly South African.     Some prefer it made from white, sifted cake flour, flavoured with anise or buttermilk, sometimes studded with raisins, some leaven...

I simply cannot resist running for my camera as luscious May parades her golden hues wherever I go. The potted lemon and the huge mulberry in my back yard are vying for my attention, each glorious in her own right. In a much loved fruit bowl, some ruby grapefruit (a gift from MaTshepo, the rain harvester who grows them organically and with only rain water as irrigation) glows against the warm wood of the table. At a recent drumming circle (our first) a fire dancer had me trying new settings with my camera, it being quite a challenge to capture the magical mood of the fiery movements. I seem to be soaked in yellow. Happy, sunny Yellow! Which, according to my copy of The healing powers of Chromotherapy (using colours to cure diseases) by Hari Om Gupta, "represents intelligence, wisdom and loyalty. Yellow has been associated with the divine symbols of creation since time immemorial." I'm not too sure what that implies, but it makes me feel happy and hopeful, even thou...