Well said, Cheryl. My year was much like yours with broken limbs holding on to bear fruit, an Autumn that came and went too quickly...and now after a week-long sinus infection, I'm looking outside to what I can accomplish in these 50-degree days. Enjoy your place. It looks and sounds lovely.
Thanks, Suzan! I’m sure there are so many other amazing gardens and orchards, including yours. But this is what I’ve tended for 40+ years. Hope you feel better soon!
It's been a rough day. Reading your words tonight put everything in a much better perspective. Thank you for a lovely reminder of all the beauty around us.
Beautiful, Cheryl. Being conscious of connection with the life cycle of nature is necessary healing in these times. Thank you for bringing it to our awareness.
Of course my first thought is I hope the kittens and their mother have found a safe sanctuary (home?) for the blustery days/weeks/months ahead!
Thank you for a beautifully written, colorful piece.
Your place is due for calm and quiet after all the turmoil you described. But you put into perspective the natural changes of the season we have come to expect, adapt to, and in many ways, love around here. Thank you.
Hi, Jim. I have never before posted a cat photo online. But these kitties won my heart. I only wish we knew what happened; I hope they found new, warm digs at a neighboring farm. You’re right, we always are in the midst of change and reinvention.
Reading Robert Frost mixed with a chronicle of your life on the farm this year and your acceptance of the winter coming is a lovely way to leave autumn behind. Thank you.
And Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours Cheryl! I look forward to reading your substacks. Always something thought provoking and/or inspiring. Your latest post has nudged me to get out my Robert Frost!
What an awesome description of the seasons you’ve experienced! Life happens in our world, cats and kittens included. My sentiments of their continued existence reflects optimism as well. Perhaps another season will witness new life with surprising results. We’ve had many come and go over time. One family line persisted throughout our children’s early years, and into middle adulthood. The momma’s name was Flash, a fierce protector of her litters. The line ended only a few years ago. But others have taken their place, using their skills as avid hunters in the control of mice around the farm.
What a lovely piece, Cheryl. With the exception of a small patch of land beside my small new-to-me home, I think my gardening days are over – and I miss them. I vicariously enjoyed your gardens through your writing. And thank you for adding your photos!
Cheryl, I had to go back to the wooly bear yo see the prediction, before I reread the Robert Frost quotes (favorite of mine). This was a divine song you wrote to the seasons and treacheries therein from weather and man’s work!
Thank you, Deborah! I’m so glad this resonated with you. We’ll have to tap our inner reserves to cope with the worst of Mother Nature, as well as the human-caused storms in our headlines.
Letting go in so many ways! Iowa is ever changing.
That, too!
Well said, Cheryl. My year was much like yours with broken limbs holding on to bear fruit, an Autumn that came and went too quickly...and now after a week-long sinus infection, I'm looking outside to what I can accomplish in these 50-degree days. Enjoy your place. It looks and sounds lovely.
Thanks, Suzan! I’m sure there are so many other amazing gardens and orchards, including yours. But this is what I’ve tended for 40+ years. Hope you feel better soon!
Lovely. Pure joy.
Thanks so much, Julie!
It's been a rough day. Reading your words tonight put everything in a much better perspective. Thank you for a lovely reminder of all the beauty around us.
You’re welcome, Janice. I’m glad to have helped, in some small way. Take care!
Simply beautiful, Cheryl.
Thank you, Catherine. So good to hear from you! All the best to you and your family this Thanksgiving.
Beautiful, Cheryl. Being conscious of connection with the life cycle of nature is necessary healing in these times. Thank you for bringing it to our awareness.
Thank you, Jo! I appreciate your insights.
Of course my first thought is I hope the kittens and their mother have found a safe sanctuary (home?) for the blustery days/weeks/months ahead!
Thank you for a beautifully written, colorful piece.
Your place is due for calm and quiet after all the turmoil you described. But you put into perspective the natural changes of the season we have come to expect, adapt to, and in many ways, love around here. Thank you.
Hi, Jim. I have never before posted a cat photo online. But these kitties won my heart. I only wish we knew what happened; I hope they found new, warm digs at a neighboring farm. You’re right, we always are in the midst of change and reinvention.
Reading Robert Frost mixed with a chronicle of your life on the farm this year and your acceptance of the winter coming is a lovely way to leave autumn behind. Thank you.
Thank you, Kathi. As you observe, Frost’s poetic wisdom is timeless!
And Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours Cheryl! I look forward to reading your substacks. Always something thought provoking and/or inspiring. Your latest post has nudged me to get out my Robert Frost!
What an awesome description of the seasons you’ve experienced! Life happens in our world, cats and kittens included. My sentiments of their continued existence reflects optimism as well. Perhaps another season will witness new life with surprising results. We’ve had many come and go over time. One family line persisted throughout our children’s early years, and into middle adulthood. The momma’s name was Flash, a fierce protector of her litters. The line ended only a few years ago. But others have taken their place, using their skills as avid hunters in the control of mice around the farm.
What a lovely piece you have written capturing seasons of change. I appreciate the weaving of poetry with your real life in your yard experiences.
I love the seasons of change but find too much sadness in the dying that autumn presents us.
Thanks, Denise. It becomes more difficult to let go as the years pass. Stay snug and warm in your unique home this winter!
What a lovely piece, Cheryl. With the exception of a small patch of land beside my small new-to-me home, I think my gardening days are over – and I miss them. I vicariously enjoyed your gardens through your writing. And thank you for adding your photos!
Thank you, Mary Jo! You describe another letting go. I know that day will come.
Cheryl, I had to go back to the wooly bear yo see the prediction, before I reread the Robert Frost quotes (favorite of mine). This was a divine song you wrote to the seasons and treacheries therein from weather and man’s work!
Word perfection!
Thank you, Deborah! I’m so glad this resonated with you. We’ll have to tap our inner reserves to cope with the worst of Mother Nature, as well as the human-caused storms in our headlines.