It's Time for August
The sweet peppers are finally turning color, so I know it must be true. August is at the door and if I don't answer the call, he'll let himself in. The relativity of time plays its devious game in the summertime, when one day quickly fades into the next and the school year encroaches on our days under the sun as four. Father Time choreographs a most beguiling timetable, provoking me to make the most of it.
Didn't I learn my lesson when I was young, watching 'time fly' away from me when I was enjoying myself? There were the times too when life slowed to a sludgey crawl, and I felt stuck in the endless days of a place in time I didn't wish to be. Perhaps it was even an opportunity offered by wily Father Time, a slowing of the tempo, allowing me a chance to wrestle with my discord and to come out of the other side before the metronome picked up its pace again. In recent years, with the kids in my life and with a good appetite for life, it feels like the pendulum of time's metronome is stuck at a fast speed.
And so this summer, we broke a few of our foolish rules from previous farm years and stepped away from our work with frequency, allowing ourselves to partake in May and Jack's whimsies, and for us to have and hold each other more often. Rich joined us for a couple of whirlwind getaways to Lake Huron where we farmed before coming back to Dayton, a luxury he didn't afford himself for the past few years. We managed to keep pace with the veggies in the field, while also allowing room for spontaneity, one of the elixirs of life. And in this wild existence of living and working on our farm, work and play are happily intermingled...so much of our work being play. The kid in both of us is very much alive and at play with the elements, and with the mechanics of the farm, bringing our ideas to life.
On a hot day while Rich and I were catching up with the ginger and tomatoes in the high tunnel, M and J infiltrated the calm and quiet. Having found 'magic' curly branches from the willow tree which shades their sandbox, they came to 'brush us with magic'. 'Magic for your hands, mom'...my hands, my busy hands, which bear the burden of summertime farm work. And 'magic for your weeding dad', Rich's weeding which allows us to see the fruits of our labor. Little do they know that it's the youthful magic that runs so strong in them still which has given us so much. So many regular reminders to stop the metronome from clicking and to experience the here and now.
Adulthood is rich, but richest when you answer the calls of your inner child.
August Around Here:
-Market Prime Time: Tis the season when I wonder if I should have another table in our booth. So many great veggies coming in...this month we will see potatoes, onions, ginger, sweet peppers, and more join our menu. Oakwood Market 9-1 on Saturdays...come and get it!
-Missing a Market: We have a very special wedding to attend on August 12th. We will miss you all that day, but know that you can grab a salad, microgreen, pea or sunflower shoot from Dorothy Lane Market that week/weekend.
-School: School begins mid-August and May heads to 1st grade and Jack is trying out preschool (if my mushy heart doesn't change its mind and keep him home)
-DLM Garden Boxes: We have been flattered to be a part of Dorothy Lane Market's Garden Box subscription. Along with other area farmers, we contribute various veggies to the csa box program that DLM is piloting this year.