With my trip to Italy over, I have had the time but not the inclination to get out to paint. There are gifts to wrap, decorations to put up and dinners to plan.

I finally roused from the Holiday referee and left the house to paint with my friend Marian Fortunati. She suggested the Balboa Nature Reserve, where I had painted once before. It is a lovely little lake and bird refuge that is located in Balboa Park which in turn is in the middle of the San Fernando Valley.

Fall has come late this year and many of the trees are only now changing color so the surrounding paths were a combination of rust, gold and green vegetation. The lake in the reserve accommodates an even greater abundance of birds in the winter. Egrets, pelicans, ducks, storks and many more bird species make their home here. I picked a quiet spot among the reeds to paint. The birds cooperated, coming back to feed while I was painting.