 |
| Ice on our creek |
Tonight the moon is full and Ice Time 2021 becomes history. We've marked the Vernal Equinox and the Wheel of the Seasons is turning once more.
 |
| Beautiful ice crystals |
We began the month with ice edging the creeks and drainage swales.
 |
| Pussy willows |
We end the month with pussy willows emerging in the meadow, spring bulbs blooming and birdsong and peeper calls beginning in earnest.
Nature ramps up her activity, and so too, do we. We have finished our time of rest and reflection, and spent time considering our next activities.
 |
| Hardanger snowflakes |
I finished my snowflake project. This is something I determined to complete in my sixth decade. (I don't have a "bucket list" so much as I have a "project pile" to realize.)
I also got some cleaning done: kitchen drawers and cabinets, floors...
My seedlings in the cellar are coming along nicely...
 |
| Cabbage, tomatoes, asters |
 |
| One down, one to go |
... and we got our first dose of the COVID vaccine. Next dose is on April 8th.
Bob got the taxes done and framed the snowflake piece for me. His work at Cornell always picks up at this time of year, so he's putting in some overtime there for a while.
We decided that this summer our big project will be outside tasks. We have enough of these to last a couple of years. We'll concentrate on repairing the deck, repointing the stone foundation and painting the Bilco doors. This of course, is in addition to all of our regular summer tasks.
 |
| Daffodils from our garden |
I've been cleaning up the yard from winter and fixing up flower beds that Lunette had been "rearranging" before she left us.
 |
| Garden fix up in progress |
 |
| Pruning the Nectarine |
Bob's begun pruning the fruit trees...
 |
| Bob mending his fence. It's shocking! |
...and mending the electric fence. When Lunette was on the job, Bob got lax about maintaining the fence. Now that she's gone, he'll need to keep it in good repair to keep the critters out.
Just to show that "nature abhors a vacuum", five local feral (?) cats have taken up patrolling inside our fenced area. (Lodi is the "wandering cat" capital of the county. Some are truly feral, others simply have irresponsible owners. Don't even get me started. We call them "coyote fodder".) Notice, it takes five cats to replace one Airedale. Also, cats do not hunt in the rain. Lunette would view this as very slip shod work. This must be where the term "wuss" originated.
It is strange to work in the yard without Lunette's presence.
Soon I'll be sowing lettuce, spinach and peas in the garden. Shallots have already been planted.
It's the season when things are stirring and emerging. Within us the desire to take things a little easier and enjoy nature more has been stirring. We hope to be free to stop work a little earlier each day and use the time to observe nature. Sometimes we'll go to a local park, other times we'll use our own property as an observation station.
The difficult part will be to practice enough discipline to break away from work. Yesterday was our first attempt. It took me a while to reconcile myself to it. I know it's one of the things needed for health and wholeness, so I will dedicate myself to do this, just as I have done with a healthy diet and regular exercise. (I just realized that we've been eating healthfully for 24 years, and I've been doing a daily exercise program for 27 years. It certainly becomes a lifestyle! But it happens a day at a time.)
What's stirring in you, my friends? Now's the season of fresh growth. Something tiny perhaps? That's perfectly fine. Nourish and attend it.
Till next time,
Kathleen and Bob
 |
| Snowdrops in our ravine |
