A Season for Everything

When we are deep down in Winter and I feel cooped up in my house and tired of being cold, I like to think about the seasons ahead, and behind. Spring will come with its warmer days and anticipation of the busy days of Summer. Summer will bring an abundance of work, and days so hot I dream of the cold of Winter, and Fall will follow close behind with its own bounty and preserving that comes with it. This is how it is meant to be, at least for me. One season leading into the next, each with its own beauty to offer.

Right now we are in the heat of Summer and the busy season. Crops are peaking in production with some tapering off, and for me that means a lot of canning and preserving. Fall gardens are being planned and planted, and in the midst of that we are now selling our goods at the local farmer's market. It has been a busy Summer, with each week packed to the brim with things that must be done in order to capitalize on this bountiful season. New animals are joining the farm, fences are being built and repaired, chicks are hatching and growing out, and it seems that for each task I check off the list, 2 more crop up. By August I am exhausted, and only about halfway to the finish line that is our first frost.

Yet, in all the hustle and bustle there exist the most beautiful moments. Each morning I like to take my coffee on the porch and read a bit. The birds are always singing, and on lucky days am blessed by a bee pollinating my morning glories, or a hummingbird that passes by. Just in the last few days I can feel the change in the air that can only be felt if you slow down enough to feel the days as they flow by. Fall is in the air, and although we have many hot days ahead, I am reminded that this season will soon end, and another will begin.

Fall too will be busy, as we scurry to put away as much food as we can for the coming Winter. We will plant and tend to those Fall gardens that began in July, get next years garlic, onions, and flower bulbs in the ground. We will place mulch and fertilizer over the spent garden beds so that next year can be more prolific that this year, and we will build and plan for Winter animal spaces. Our market days will end but we will continue to sell products from our home on a weekly basis, meaning the workload of preparation will not end. School will begin, and as a home school family, that means the addition of school work. In some ways the Fall is busier than Summer, but it will also bring so much beauty.

The wall of green that marks Summer has already began to fade in areas to gold and orange. That fading will slowly continue until the green is totally replaced by the glorious colors of Autumn. The birds and the bees will hunker down for the coming winter, and the crickets, fireflies and cicadas that mark each Summer night will disappear. The sun will set further South and the world will begin to feel more still. There is a buzz in the air that can be felt all Summer long if you can remain still enough to feel it; that will fade and a calm will replace it.

By the first frost Winter will feel at hand and the days will be slower. We will cook more, read more, and spend more time inside. There will hardly be a rush at all to do a thing, and we will enjoy it for the time. Then we will be busy with the Holiday season and the cooking and sharing that comes along with it. We will bake and share in fellowship with the community that is so dear to us. Animals will be tended to, and the cold weather will point out all the places we need to improve in their habitats. Days will be spent in front of a warm fire instead of the warmth of the sun.

The days of Winter seem to pass most slowly for me, but there is a joy to them as well. I will plan out my Spring and Summer gardens, anticipate the birth of new animals, and plant the first seeds in February. Winter is short here, but it is a welcome reprieve from the busy season. If we are lucky we will get snow and all the fun that brings. If not we will welcome many rainy days that will provide for a productive season ahead.

Spring will come with warming days, early planting, restless animals, and God willing, a lot of rain. We will clean up all that gets neglected in the cold of Winter, and lay out the plans ahead. We will plant new trees, harvest the earliest of crops and shake ourselves off. We will take in the first flowers, and feel the warm sun on our skin. Spring is my favorite season; like the morning of the earth. It holds such promise, and brings with it new life in all forms. Spring on a farm is one place where you can see God in nearly everything. And then Spring will make way for Summer again.

Each season brings its own purpose, and in each season we give thanks for the ability and the honor to live in accordance to those seasons. It is a blessing to be able to flow with what each season brings, and to reflect on how much our lives mirror the seasons if only we allow them to. God's perfect design.