I am trying to let spring slip away. It has been a season of hopeful busyness as we hurried to get everything done before we retreat from the hot summer sun. We have prepared the soil, planted and now we wait.
We see subtle changes in the patterns around us. The Oriole who returned in spring- boldly showing off his bright orange plumage, quietly slips away into the thick and shady underbrush. Cracks in the clay which are always there, grow wider and longer, causing the sheep to stumble as they drag their feet out to the pasture. The fields lie quiet as the last lonely tractor heads back to the barn and we watch and wait for the corn, beans and wheat to grow…wait for the rain. We measure the colour changes in the wheat field- knowing that when all is a golden brown, summer will be half gone.
It will soon be time to bring out our favourite stories and poems to reread; wash fleeces,- placing them out to dry in the sun; mark patches of wild plants that will make good dye baths for our wool; enjoy the tastes of summer as we experiment with new recipes. Pleasures are many but there is also a restlessness of summer that sends one’s thoughts deeper.
Our minds do not remain idyll but we become seekers…seekers who find ourselves going on pilgrimages to holy relics, picnics down strange and unfamiliar roads or coming out of our homes to sit under a starry sky as we ponder about life. But let not your restlessness cause you too much unhappiness. Summer is a time of wonder and fullness. We may look like we are playing but it is all meaningful.
It seems like only yesterday when homeschooling lessons were done for the day, my daughter and I would drag our spinning wheels out to the pasture and sit and spin before an audience of curious sheep. My husband on returning home from work would say, “what’s with the spinning wheels?” He didn’t get it! Imagine…he thought we were playing.
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