Leaves are piling thick around our ankles and tires.  The trees are turning to sticks; Bare sticks that indicate the long winter that is to come, but also that let a light fall to the ground that reminds me that the sun will not leave us all together.   The days are shortening so rapidly it’s hard to keep up.  We had to mend our chicken coop by the light of a headlight last night, and rose again this morning before the day officially started.  It is dark, yes, but that just makes the sun even that much more glorious.  She is dramatic in these in between times, she is.  We take note.

We covered most of the vegetable garden with winter rye seeds.  I am not sure if it’s too late for them to germinate, but we will see.  I harvested all the things except the Jerusalem artichokes and the butternut squash, which just wont seem to turn tan, maybe this extra sun on their tough skin will do the trick.  I have a few more rows of garlic to set in place, and I still plan on setting a make shift cold frame over my spinach and lettuce.  Bulbs have been tucked in for the winter, hundreds of them in fact, and the slicing down of perennials and clearing away is in full force.

 Our seasons first fire is crackling this morning.  It isn’t terribly cold, but cold enough, and we have the wood, so we did.  Now the dreaming for next year can officially begin.  I so looked forward to this first year.  This time of mine to have a beautiful spot of earth to grow something of my very own, and it was nothing short of what I expected.  It was marvelous.  I just made a typo and wrote “I was marvelous.”  Of course I changed it back, but come to think of it, I think that it is true too.  We don’t toot our own horns quite enough, in my opinion.  I worked hard, I loved those little plants, so yeah… I was marvelous too.