The wind is cooler…the nights are longer…and my sunflower that I did not plant has surpassed all but the roof of the house.
Our summer is over. Even though we didn’t go swimming or do any of the summery things this year…I still enjoyed it. I worked in my garden, I rested in my hammock, I went for nice long walks. But as nice as Summer is..or can be…Fall is by far my favorite season.
As soon as the wind picks up, the leaves turn color….I’m filled with the urge to pick apples or bake pies. Why is that? All of a sudden I’m thinking of Halloween decorations and freshly sharpened pencils. Then I get a sudden thrill deep in the pit of my stomach that knows it won’t be long till we’re counting down the sleeps till Santa comes.
I start to wonder ‘what will I make for gifts this year?’ ‘What do they need?’…the turkey will need basting…
All because of a cool breeze that hits me… in August?
Now I can finally slow down on the watering & weeding part of the gardening. I will have to look up what I should do with my plants & flowers to help them get through the winter. I look forward to picking and drying my herbs from the Kitchen garden the most.
Have I mentioned that I planted apple & cherry trees last summer? Well, I have. Last year, we got one cherry. This year, the cherry trees seemed to have died off…yet, they have rampant growth at the bottom of the trunk. The leaves are the same as were on the tree the year before. So maybe it’s re-growing itself.
My apple trees have done a bit better. I have apples. On one tree. This is not them in the picture.
There were four apples. Two of them seem to have fallen off over the summer and disappeared. Now there are two. So now I have to decide what to do with them. Apple pie? Apple crumble?…a tart? Decisions, decisions…
And of course, now sleeping comes much easier with the cooler nights. There’s nothing better than a cool breeze blowing over your head to make you snuggle down under the duvet. I haven’t had much time in the hammock this year. So I thought I should try and squeeze in some time before I have to take it down. I grabbed my book and trotted over to the side yard in my bare feet…quite conscious of what might be in the grass, but nonetheless…stubborn.
As soon as my feet went up into the hammock, it swung to the right. I swung to the left. Apparently when I hung it, I didn’t lay it right. Next time I will use a level. Once I was all stretched out I realized that I would also need to bring a pillow next time….. I opened my book.
Crack. Smack. Thump.
Squirrels…and birds…knocking nuts out of the Butternut tree. Then there were the screeches and squawking among them over who would get which nut.
~deep breath~
I can do this, I thought. I’ve been a mother for 20 years. I can tune out almost anything and force myself to relax. After a few times of being distracted, I finally stopped hearing them. Then Son #1 drops by for a visit. With Dog #2. Back from their walk. He’s amiably filling me in on things he’s done and interesting facts he read that day.
I smile, I close my eyes…when I open them, he’s smiling at me. Still full of information to share. I close my book and rise carefully off the hammock. We walk around the house, up the stairs and through the door. Amazingly enough he’s still talking. Without a break. I head to the bathroom, stopping at the door to turn and look at him. He had to back up a step to keep from bumping into me.
‘You’re not going to follow me, are you?’
‘No,…. I ….wasn’t.’
‘That’s good’, I thought, ’cause otherwise this trip is redundant.’
If there’s one thing this Mom of 20 years has learned…it’s that the bathroom door with a lock is my best friend. Whether it’s a bath, a break or just some peace & quiet….sometimes it seems like that’s my only haven.
I’ll be out in time to bake that 2-apple pie.
