One of my favorite places in the world is Hope Orchards. A few years back I almost bought a piece of land right across the street from the orchard. Recently, when my brother flew home to enjoy a long, fall weekend in Maine, we visited the orchard and spent an afternoon picking from the rows and rows of Macouns, Cortlands, and Northern Spies. The late afternoon light was magic. Soft and blindingly sparkling at the same time. The form of my brother, his hat tipped back, apple in hand, dappled in and out of solid appearance. The checks of his plaid shirt chased off into the leaves of the trees at times, while the features of his face played hid and seek with the back-light. Only by his ears could I tell he was really and truly there, standing before me.

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207 Paintings post everyish Tuesday around 5:30am EST on both The Maine and jessicaleeives.com. Save thirty percent on any 4x4 inch oil on panel painting by making your purchase within the first week of its posting. Instead of $300 pay just $207, a number which just happens to be the Maine state area code.

Tuesday 207 Paintings are exclusive to The Maine. They depict the land, the light and the people that make this state a state of wonder. Jessica is editor of The Maine and writes occasionally as The Outsider.