Memorial Day ~ Remembering

Today is a day for remembering our loved ones who are no longer with us. 

I miss my Mom today. Of course, I miss her everyday. It's been 15 years since she passed away, and I still think sometimes that I might pick up the phone and give her a call. Then I remember.

I can't be with her physically, and I can't even visit her grave today to adorn it with fresh flowers. So this post, and my private conversations with her spirit will have to do for today.

Remember your loved ones and celebrate their lives today. Celebrate your life too. It all goes by so quickly.

© Copyright 2012 Mountain Harvest Basket

I lost some weight today!

Little braids keepsakes...

Maybe 1/2 pound total?

Here's what I looked like a couple of days ago:

Looking like I have looked for the past 10 years or so.

I found it kind of difficult to take a good picture of myself. My arms aren't quite long enough to hold the camera out and get everything in focus. Still, this photo of me with my long straight hair isn't too bad in my own opinion. I liked my long hair. It was soft and flowing. Very natural and for the most part, easy to take care of. I really didn't have to do anything with it except to wash it and comb the many tangles out. I liked how it looked flowing over my shoulders.

It did get in my way frequently, however. Causing me to push it back into a low, unflattering single ponytail. It was hot in the summertime and took forever to dry naturally in the cold wintertime we have here. I was always getting it caught underneath me, or in the car door.

It was time to make a change.

So a few months ago I started thinking about getting it cut shorter. Like when I lived in the big city and got curly perms every few months, only this time I knew I didn't want the perms. I have become a more "natural" girl, not wanting chemicals on my hair or skin or even in my home.

So a bit scared and nervous. Not sure whether I'd like it or not. I made an appt with my local hairstylist to get my hair cut and shaped. She told me to look on the internet to find a picture of a haircut that I liked.

I really liked the way Amy Adams' hair looked when she was playing the role of Julie Powell in the movie Julie & Julia. So I printed some photos and brought them to my stylist.


Now I realize that I am never going to look as cute and young as Amy Adams, but I was hoping that her hairstyle would fit me well and make me look good. I also realized that Ms Adams had a team of hairstylists and makeup artists on hand to make sure she was beautiful, but I figured I'd just have to wing it on my own. Oh well.

So here is a photo of me right after getting my hair cut short today:

Not exactly Amy Adams, but the hair is still cute and perky. It will take some getting used to for me to be comfortable with my new lack of hair. I still feel like I have the long heavy hair flowing down my back. I keep flicking my head to one side to move the hair out of my eyes, but it is not there to move. A weird feeling. Like a limb being missing, sort of.

After I wash it the next time, it will likely feel more comfortable to me.

In this photo below, I can see my Mom looking back at me. I have her eyes and her mouth. Kind of weird seeing Mom in the mirror. Her hair was kind of cut like this late in her life.




This photo is my favorite so far, because it has my sweet kitty Sarah's cute furry face next to mine:

I look kind of odd in this photo, but she is always a cutie.

So that's my personal adventure for today. Till next time...

© Copyright 2011 Mountain Harvest Basket

Late Summer Reflections: 50 Trips Around the Sun

Late Summer View ~ Dry & Hot


It is the third week in August. Late summer. Almost time for the kids to be back in school. Time to get in that last minute summer vacation.

Some call it the “dog days of summer”. Though the weather is still blazing hot, I know that autumn is just around the corner. Every August I realize this, and every August seems to sneak up on me suddenly as if I didn’t know it was coming. As if I couldn’t read my calendar.


Can you spy the veggies in between the weeds?

There are major weeds in my vegetable garden right now. I have really neglected it this year. I never even got most of it planted, and now it’s too late. For this year anyway. It’s just too hot out, and I have been too busy with other things to pay much attention to my beloved garden. The garden that feeds me. The garden that I enjoy so much.

The late summer season and my neglected garden seem to be metaphors for my own life. I feel as though I am entering my own late summer season, and I am aware that I have neglected many important areas of my life over the past few years.

Oh, I have been busy, not lazy at all. I always have something going on. Some project or plan on which I am working. It just seems that much of my time and energy have been siphoned off lately taking care of other people’s problems, cleaning up other’s messes and trying to find balance in my life that I swear I used to have. I haven’t spent enough time on the things that I love the most in this life. I need to focus more on the things (and beings!) that make me truly happy, that inspire me, that help me to grow and evolve my soul.



Whispering Jessie ~ My Sweet Kitty



Jack & Bob


Each August I think about these things, but particularly so this third week in August of this particular year. This is a special time for me.

Today is my 50th birthday.

At exactly 10am today I turned 50 years old. That’s the big five-oh. A half century. I am a “semi-centenarian”, if there is such a thing.

I guess I am feeling this birthday much more than I felt my 40th or my 30th. With this birthday come many things that have to do with the aging process that I don’t really like.

Physical body changes. Sleep disturbances. Weight gain. Forgetfulness and distraction. Acute mental and emotional awareness that I am not a young woman anymore. These are some of the things that I don’t really like.

The medical people refer to me as a “post-menopausal woman”. Great label. Thanks. Thanks, so much. Accurate, but not very flattering.

Aches and pains seem to occur more frequently now. Stiffness. Especially in the morning upon waking. Waking, that is, if I even get any sleep at all during the night.

I went bra shopping the other day. I really needed some new ones as my old ones were so tattered and worn. This is not a chore that I look forward to. Standing there in the unflattering vaguely blue-green florescent lighting in the department store dressing room looking at that middle aged woman staring back from the mirror at me. That can’t be me, I think to myself. I don’t feel like that woman looks. Didn’t I just turn 20, like yesterday? This woman’s body is overweight and saggy! That can’t be me. And these bras don’t fit like they used to fit on my once thin and sexy young body. It depressed me for a few minutes. Not a long time, I recovered my good mood fairly quickly, but it’s still not a fun task to shop for clothes or intimate apparel these days. Forget about bathing suits.

I need to get in shape and lose some weight. I am not happy with how my body looks or performs. I need my strength and flexibility back. It will take work, but I must do it, and do it soon. I want to feel strong, vibrant and sexy.

When I look in my mirror these days, I see my Mom looking back at me. Now, I love my Mom dearly, and I think she was a very pretty woman, but I am not ready to look as old as she was when I last saw her at age 73 (she passed away 13 years ago). I see more and more of her in my mirror each passing day. I say “Hi Mom” and walk away from the mirror.

My 40th birthday seemed like it was going to be a milestone. A turning point. My entry into middle age. But it really didn’t have a major effect on my psyche. It came and went largely unnoticed.

I remember on my 30th birthday, I sent my Mom a bouquet of flowers with a special note attached saying “Mom, thank you for having me. I love you.” She loved all flowers, and my gift really touched her heart. She thanked me over and over again. I am so glad that I did that for my 30th and did not wait, because my Mom wasn’t here for my 40th. I am glad I got the chance to thank her for creating me, raising me and giving me her love and wisdom. I do still miss her so very much. Especially on my birthday. She always made my birthday very special with her fun gifts wrapped in colorful papers and ribbons.


My Mom ~ Jennie


I think maybe that’s why this 50th birthday is making me pause and think so much. Maybe I am just really missing my Mom right now. I miss her nurturing and her acceptance. I miss her passion for life, her laughter and her love.

A lot has been going on in my life this past year. A lot of changes. A lot of responsibilities. A lot of stress. I have had to deal with letting go of things that I had been holding onto for a very long time. Letting go of some things from my childhood, too. I’ll write more about these things another time, but for now, I guess I have been a bit too focused on my own aging because of having to let go of my childhood things. All at once. With me sort of kicking and screaming to keep hold of them. At age 50. Sheesh.

I need to learn which things to keep and which to let go freely. I need to get my balance back. My joy. My passion. My zest for life. I need to look forward to new chapters in my life. My fifties. OK. If I have to. There are worse things than growing older.

I actually like my life. I am loved. I have friends. I have family. My home is comfortable and pleasant. I have plenty to eat. (too much usually!) I really do have it good. I need to focus on those positive things more often.

This milestone 50th birthday has been a wake up call for me to actively improve the things in my life that need improving and to let go of the things that are not working to make me happy.

It’s time. I have much work to do.

I will start tomorrow.

Today we celebrate and eat cake & ice cream!




Happy Birthday to me! I love you all. Thank you for being in my life. ♥

© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

One Month into Spring

It snowed here last night. Not a lot, but still cold, icy, snow.

Third week in April. It's supposed to be springtime now, right?



My driveway ~ can you see the pear & apple blossoms covered in snow?


It's been a long, cold, wet winter. I am tired of the rain and snow now.



Cherry Tree & Bay Tree ~ snow frosted



CA Redbud Tree ~ in full bloom ~ snow frosted

Note my lounge chair in the photo above. The one I enjoy sunning myself in when it's warm outside. Covered in a thin layer of snow this morning. No sunning myself today!

That's the edge of my main raised bed garden to the right of the photo. Full of snow. Good thing I have been too busy to plant it yet. Only the over wintered garlic grows in there today. I normally have all of my cool weather crops in by the first week in April. Between the weather and my schedule this year, I have done almost nothing to ready my gardens. The guys did help me to weed it. So that's something.


Manzanita Trees ~ pretty when laced with snow


I long for the softness, warmth and sweet scents of Spring. I want to see my gardens grow. I love the little seedlings pushing up from the soil. So brave. So strong. So determined. I love how they grow big and produce much.

Butterflies and flowers. I am so ready for them.



Colorful Roses ~ picked April 18th

The beautiful, sweet smelling roses in this last photo, were picked at my Mom's old house located a couple of hundred miles from here in a warmer sea-level climate. It was actually almost hot there last Sunday when I collected them. They remind me of her.

© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

Comfort Food

Meatloaf & Mashed Potatoes ~ comfort food
(yeah, I know it looks like meatballs, but it's just meatloaf pieces)

I was in need of some special "comfort food" today. So I decided to make myself a nice dinner of my Mom's meatloaf recipe and my mashed potatoes.

Simple food. Meat & potatoes. Not filled with dark green veggies or their nutritious antioxidants. However, I did use natural meat that had no additives, hormones or antibiotics in it. The potatoes were organic russets. Nothing from my garden this time. All from the store.

I just wanted to be comforted, filled up with good food and experience the loving memories of my Mom and my childhood that this meal brings my heart. An easy to make and easy to eat dinner.

Thanks Mom! I love you. Thinking of you today.


© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

Small Peach Harvest

Juicy Sweet Elberta Peaches

As with all of my fruit harvests this summer, my peach harvest was on the small side. My tiny Elberta peach tree is 9 years old, but still only gives me a few peaches each year. This year she grew 12 beautiful juicy peaches, but the birds got to at least 3 of them before I discovered that they were ripe. So I harvested 9 delicious peaches this year from my itty bitty tree. I ate every one of them fresh and "out of hand".

Elberta peaches are my favorite peach by far. They are free stone peaches with dark yellow flesh when ripe, and the outside has a nice tart slightly fuzzy peel that usually has a bit of a red blush.

As a young kid I remember eating my fill of peaches in late summer from the Elberta peach tree my Mom had planted in our backyard. Those peaches were huge and so juicy that when I bit into one, it would dribble juice down my chin and sometimes onto my shirt! I remember the whole sensory experience like it was yesterday. The sunshine warm freshly picked peach, fuzzy in my hand. The soft yet firm flesh giving way to my bite. The juice sweet and tangy at the same time squirting all over me. I loved it. And still do. Every time I eat a home grown Elberta peach those sweet childhood memories of my Mom and her peaches come flooding back to me. We had so many peaches that my Mom made pies, froze some sliced peaches for later eating and gave many away to friends and neighbors. Her tree would bear so heavily some years that the branches would break under the weight if not propped up to support them.

Since then, all other peaches that come my way are measured by those big juicy Elberta memories. Rarely have I found one that could compete.

My peach growing goal is to match that peach production memory of my childhood. Each year I will try my best. Those are wonderful peaches, and wonderful memories that I will keep with me always.


© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Flowers in the Rain

Rainy Day Flower Harvest Basket

Today is a blissfully peaceful, rainy, cloudy, sort of cool but humid day here at Mountain Harvest Basket.

My phone has not rung even once today. I can hardly believe that. I pick up the receiver occasionally to make sure the dial tone is still working.

Even my incoming emails have been less than usual. Certainly my outgoing ones are less on the weekends lately.

I love that today is a slow, stay-around-home-and-do-what-I feel-like-doing day. That is such a rarity in my life. Usually I am going in several directions at once with many partially finished tasks all at the same time and juggling phone calls, emails, people, activities, outings and events. I can do that. I am even pretty good at all that coordination stuff, but it sure wears me out to a frazzle sometimes.

Why do I feel like I always have to give 110% of my energy to each project, event or person? Why can't just part of me, my energy or my attention be "good enough"?

Because it isn't. That's why.

I am sure you all can relate to this. Then since it is impossible to give so much of myself to every single thing that I pile up on my massive To-Do lists, I get frustrated with myself and then I feel like I have failed. I freeze and proscrastinate starting projects because I know I won't be able to do them perfectly as well as I would like to. I also sometimes feel like I have let myself or others down in the process.

Sometimes I am just so stressed out that I want to run away, far away, and hide for awhile. I fantasize about jumping into my car and just driving away somewhere. Somewhere peaceful and beautiful. Somewhere where nobody knows me and nobody expects anything from me. It would be peaceful.......for awhile. Crazy thing to fantasize about, huh? Yeah, probably.

I am really not the hermit type in general though. And I can't really jump in my car and just drive away from here in search for peace, beauty and anonymity. I have responsibilities here.

So instead of running away today, I stayed here at my home and listened to it softly rain. Felt the breezes on my skin and the let the big raindrops wet my hair as I weeded my vegetable garden and picked myself a bouquet of lovely Spring flowers to brighten my day and my heart.



I picked a bunch of sweet smelling multi-colored Sweet Williams that grow down in my lower garden near the herbs and berries. While down there I discovered that I had a slightly over-ripe artichoke (also a flower) so I brought it in to eat later as a snack. On my way back to the house I snipped a few bundles of French Lavender that grows in my herb garden right below my bedroom window. Lovely, all of them.

Flowers, especially the softly scented ones, make me happy. Flowers also remind me of my Mom, and sometimes this little girl needs to feel her Mom close to her, especially on a peaceful, rainy, cloudy day sandwiched in between weeks of frenetic chaotic activity. Sometimes I need to remember that I can't do it all or be everything to everybody all the time. Sometimes it helps to imagine my Mom telling me that everything will be OK, and then to see her smile and hear her wonderful laugh...even if it is only in my memory.




Thanks Mom. These flowers are for you too. I know how much you love them.

I can feel you with me in the garden telling the flowers to grow.






© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Must Be the Weather

It must be something about Springtime.

It's been almost a year and this post I wrote back on April 10, 2008 still fits me today.

I finally planted the majority of my warm weather veggie seeds in little pots today. I am only about 6 weeks behind schedule! I took photos, but will post them another day. They aren't very exciting yet. Just little pots of moist dirt.

I felt good for awhile today. I felt close to my Mom while I was putting all the little seeds in the soil. I could actually feel her here with me. Smiling and laughing. Guiding me. I turned up the music I had playing on my stereo and even danced a bit around my own living room. I could feel her with me. I started to cry. Happy tears. And sad tears. Both kinds. Like I am crying right now.

I do miss her so much. But I felt her presence with me today. Spring always reminds me of my Mom.


© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

My Christmas Tree Connection

Sweet Christmas Tree,

Thank you for your beauty and your tallness
Thank you for your greenness, for your health, for your freshness & longevity
Thank you for your patience and understanding and your stately manner




Thank you for being part of my family, if only for awhile
Thank you for the lovely scent that filled my home with wishes & dreams
Thank you for each twinkle, sparkle and especially thank you for your great magic

You filled my heart with love
You helped my little girl to dream and to feel the memories of the warm safe love of my Mom and my childhood home

That more than anything is what I dream of each Christmas and hope to recreate in my own warm and safe home

So now, with gentle hands, flowing but deliberate movements, and many tears in my eyes, I remove your beautiful baubles, your seasonal jewels each one having special meaning to me and a history all its own

I untangle the warm glowing, twinkling lights from your still supple branches
I keep them lit as long as possible to light our way

Lastly I reach up to your highest branch and take down my special sparkly star that you wore so proudly

Thank you for being my friend and for your sweet service this year to make my heart brighter and my home more loving and warm

You will live outside now, on my porch, in the crisp cold air, as did your many sisters that came before you

You will be free and unadorned accept for the winter sunshine, rain, snow and the occasional wild bird that visits us

When you tell me that it is your time to go, weeks or even months from now, I will gently lay you down out by the woodshed to rest and perhaps dream

Dream of the forest from which you came.

Thank you my precious Christmas tree. You brought me happiness and magic. It saddens me to have you leave my home.

I will always love you.

♥♥♥

Ok, so now the whole world knows that I am an overly sentimental and soft hearted little girl who loves the magic of Christmas and misses her Mom dearly every day and feels a connection to her through my Christmas tree.

Oh well.

© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Lock Your Car Doors! Here Come the Zucchini!

First Zukes of the Season

I've been so busy caught up in the sweet fruit frenzy of blogging about apricot pie and ice cream, that I have fallen behind in my vegetable garden reports. Time to talk about some "hard core" summer veggies like zucchini, a type of summer squash.

While I was trying to think of a catchy title for this post, I remembered that my Mom, who grew up in New England, told me that up there the zucchini grew so prolifically that you had to lock your car doors otherwise your neighbors would fill your car with their extra zucchinis! Well, that's the story they tell up there in New England anyway. I've heard that story told about other parts of the US also, but I still think of my Mom when I think about growing zucchini.

Zucchini are usually very productive plants, and this season is starting out strong in my small garden. The photo above shows 1 1/4 lb each of dark green zucchini and my favorite light green Clarimore variety. I like the Clarimore for its beauty, but also for its mild tasting skin. I rarely peel zucchini. I prefer to eat them skins and all to get color and fiber in my meals. Both of these varieties of zuke came from the same seed packet. Renee's Garden Seeds offers packets that have 3 different kinds of zucchini in the same pack. Makes it very convenient to grow a few of each kind. I don't need more than 2 or 3 plants of each variety, so one pack of seeds works very well for me.

I also planted another variety of dark green zucchini from Peaceful Valley Garden Supply. So far it has not produced any edibles. I have faith that it will soon.

So today I had a vegetarian sandwich made with sourdough bread, lettuce, a slice of cheddar cheese and layers of very thinly sliced (I used my mandolin) light green raw zucchini. A little mayo, mustard and some seasoning, and it made a very tasty and nutrious lunch. If I had had a tomato in the house, I would have added a slice or two to the sandwich.

I was also busy later in the day turning another zucchini, this one much larger than those in the photo, into some delicious pureed zucchini soup. I got the soup zucchini as a gift from Hardware Bob, who received it as a gift from one of his customers. (he is always receiving gifts like that from his loyal customers)

This big zucchini was a dark green variety and weighed about 2 lbs! I peeled this one and then sauteed it with onions and garlic in olive oil and added in some vegetable broth and seasonings. I pureed it in the pot with one of those big immersion hand blenders and then finished the soup by stirring in a cup of rice milk. The recipe called for milk or cream, but I rarely have that around. I find that rice or soy milk works well. Today I actually added in a bit of half & half that I had left over from making ice cream the other day. It made for a delicious dinner. Satisfying yet light.


Zuke Soup ~ doesn't look like much in the photo, but tastes really good
(that's a garnish of fresh basil floating on top)

There are more zucchinis on the way! Lock your car doors....


© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Berry Nice

Freshpicked Boysenberries

When I wasn't paying attention, my boysenberries started to ripen. This year's crop is small not only in the number but also the size of the berries. Probably in part due the fact that I haven't been watering them enough. (I told you I wasn't paying attention.)

There are only about 1/2 pint of berries sitting in the beautiful berry bowl (small collander) that was my Mom's. I gave her that berry bowl as a Christmas present, the last Christmas she was still here. I miss my Mom every day, and I cherish having her beloved berry bowl. I still remember how she squealed with delight as she unwrapped that gift that last Christmas. She had seen it while shopping with me at a craft faire here in the mountain area and fell in love with it. She didn't know that I had Jack distract her while I bought it for her to save for Christmas. That was over 11 years ago. I really miss her laughter and giggles. She had such joy & spirit inside of her.

Well Ma, I am putting your sweet berry bowl to good use by filling it with my home grown berries, and I think of you each time I use it.

More boysenberries are on the vine, with the blackberries to follow in a week or two. I did remember to water them tonight.


© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Some Catching Up!

Porch Table Flora - Petunias still blooming!

Wow! It has been almost 2 full weeks since I last posted anything in this my personal blog. Time for me to do a little catching up I guess.

Health
Since I last wrote I have been recovering from a nasty head cold that had me feeling very fuzzy headed and weak. I had no energy to do my daily things, nevermind any of the seasonal projects that present themselves this time of year. Well, I got over the head cold late last week and then had another bout of headache and sinus pain early this week. My theory is that the heavy pollen that has been around me lately triggers some of my sinus headaches. Mix that with stress and some early menopause hormone fluctuations and I get very painful 3 day headaches. Ahh, but they have finally gone now, for awhile anyway. I have had a bit more sleep and little more energy these past couple of days since my head has stopped hurting.

Herbs
So last Sunday I finally planted the basil seedlings that partner Bob gifted me with last March. Until very recently it had been too cold to plant them in the garden, so I had been nursing them along on my porch table. They were anxious to get into some nutritious soil, so I planted them in my raised bed herb garden along with one of my curly leaf parsely seedlings. They are doing fine as of my garden "rounds" this morning. I'll post some photos of the herb gardens another day.

Fruit
I also have been protecting my fruit trees and berry vines with coverings of bird netting. A tedious job, but if not done, the birds and other critters will eat every piece of fruit before I can harvest any. I still have a few more trees to go. I have already harvested a couple of handfulls of strawberries. Very small. Very tasty. Not many made it all the way into the house.

Flowers
Early last week Bob gave me a nice mixed bouquet of flowers that are organically and locally grown right here in our little town. He offers them for sale in his hardware store (the local general store), North Fork Hardware, and the flower growers, Three Springs Flower Garden, offer them by monthly subscription to many individuals and businesses in our area. The mix of flowers changes as the summer season progresses. Last year I received a summer long subscription of flowers which provided me a new bouquet each week. This year, I requested a break from the subscription flowers as my pollen allergies seem more severe this year and these particular flowers seem to have a lot of heavy pollen that sadly brings me nasal misery. Anyway, even though I did have to place the mixed bouqet of flowers outside on my porch table, I did appreciate and enjoy the beauty of the flowers and the generosity of the gift. See the bouquet in the photo below. There are daisies, gallardias, sweet williams and some I am not sure of.


Mixed Flower Bouquet

Then later in the week, Bob's Mom, who lives very near me, dropped by for a visit bearing a huge bucket of sweet smelling, bright red roses in very full bloom. A friend of hers had given her a whole bunch of these wonderful roses and she decided to share some of them with me. (I think Bob may have hinted that I really liked roses a whole lot...) See them in the photo below:


Mother's Day Roses from Bob's Mom

Then about 2 days later, in a fit of romance and spontaneity, Bob was out grocery shopping and spied a dozen long stemmed red roses just starting to open their buds. They didn't have that homegrown heavenly rose scent, but each rose bud was perfect, deep red and beautiful. The gift of a dozen red roses for no special occasion at all from my guy is one of the most romantic gifts I can think of. It made me feel very special and loved. The photo below does not do their beauty justice.

Romantic Red Roses from Bob

So I received many wonderful flowers last week and had them around me until just yesterday. A wonderful way for me to celebrate Mother's Day and remember my own Mom who dearly loved her flowers and her gardens. She taught me to love them too.

Veggies

Today I managed to get out there and plant summer squash and cucumber seeds. I planted 24 Northern Pickling Cukes, and 3 each of Dark Green zucchini, Raven (also dark green) zuke, Clarimore Light Green zuke and Early Yellow Crookneck Squash. All my seeds were purchased from Peaceful Valley Farm Supply, my favorite organic seed supplier.

I also weeded and prepared the garden bed for planting my green beans hopefully tomorrow. Much more hand weeding must be done in between the lettuce seedlings and root crops that I planted a couple of weeks ago. I can hardly see the seedlings in between all of the healthy fast growing weeds out there.

Well, that's enough catching up today. I will write more about my garden, home, pets, social activities and dreams of my heart, etc. another day soon. I have some nice photos to share too.

Thanks for reading all my mundane stuff. It's all part of my Mountain Harvest Basket.

© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Night Wanderings

Full Moon Goddess

Walking alone in the dark with only the light of the full moon spilling over the nearby hills to light my way, I hike up the hill from my mailbox to my home. Too busy today to leave the house and get my mail, I do it now in the dark. It is peaceful this time of day. There is a slight breeze. It brings the sweet smell of Spring mixed with the distinct scent of steaks that one of my neighbors must be cooking on their grill. The scent of their dinner surrounds me and whets my appetite, although I have already eaten. The barbecued dinner is a sign of the warming weather. The soft breeze and the scent of pollen in the air usher in Springtime.

I look up and gaze at my Full Moon Goddess now rising higher in the sky as I approach my home on the hill. She is beautiful and so bright. She takes my breath away every time she shows off her beauty. Just for me. My moon.

Tonight she is serenaded by soft music floating up from our small town below. I can hear the guitars and the beat and the country twang of the singers. A familiar song to my ears. I stand there and sway with the music as my gaze stays fixed on the moon above. I hear them serenade me too. “knock, knock, knockin’ on heavens door….knock, knock, knockin’ on heavens door…” yes, I remember that song. The beat gets in my blood and I remember good times.

I smile at my Moon Goddess and talk softly to her. I ask her questions and listen quietly for her answers. I feel them in my heart. I can almost hear my Mom’s voice in the moon’s whisper.

The music is fading now. The singer is talking and the crowd is cheering and applauding. The town is entertained tonight, and so am I.




© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Nurtured By Nature

Springtime on my patio table

It’s been a few days since I’ve felt like posting anything here. My life and my mood have been less than ideal this week. Too much work, too little money, too little time and too little energy. Same old stuff. Add to that some health concerns about my precious kitty companion Jessie, and some partner relationship issues and you have my ingredients for a less than ideal week. Well, at least it’s Friday today. Not that Friday signals the end of the work week for me since I am self employed, but it still triggers some ancient relaxation urges in my psyche.

My sweet kitty Jessie

I want to thank my good friends both locally and in my blogging world for being so psychic and sensitive and for expressing your concern for my well being. I love and appreciate every one of you. You have reached out to me without me even asking you for it.

So here I sit sipping my second glass of cheap Merlot wondering what I will make myself for dinner. When I am stressed as I have been this week, I tend to eat rather haphazardly (which doesn’t help my mood or energy level) and I find myself missing my Mom a lot more than usual. I guess it’s her nurturing and her love that I miss the most. And her laughter. She had a great laugh.

I also miss her more around holidays, my birthday and especially as the season changes to Spring. I have always associated Springtime with my Mom. She loved her flowers and her garden so very much. She was very much like a beautiful blooming flower herself. A bright yellow King Alfred daffodil or a velvety red Mr. Lincoln rose (her favorite). At least in my eyes. She was bright and sunny most of the time. Colorful always. Fresh and vibrant. Full of life. That was my Mom. I miss her every day, but especially this time of year.

King Alfred Daffodils

It’s a wonderful time of year, my favorite season, so it’s not a sad time. I just think of her more as the flowers start to bloom and as I start to work in my garden again. I know she is with me, directing me, telling me what plants to put where and how to plant them. You see, my Mom could grow anything. She definitely had a very green thumb. I used to say that she “could grow popsicles from planting popsicle sticks”. Since her death almost 11 years ago, I seem to have cultivated my own green thumb, when before I couldn’t grow much of anything. I truly believe her spirit lives within me and helps me to continue doing the things that she loved so much.

I love to be in my garden in the Spring. I love the new growth, the new beginnings filled with promise. I enjoy seeing the earth wake up after a cold winter. I love dreaming and visualizing my bountiful harvest while planting the seeds and seedlings in the moist soil. I can feel my Mom in the garden with me. I enjoy my garden and nature in general for the beauty and the feeling they give me, but I also enjoy being in my garden because I feel so much closer to my Mom when I am there.

I’ve neglected my garden in the past couple of years. Oh, I still grew some veggies and a few flowers and herbs, I should say they pretty much grew themselves, but I haven’t really given my garden enough priority or attention to truly feed my soul, make my spirit soar and allow myself to be nurtured by nature, and of course feel closer to my Mom.

So this Spring, I think I must make my garden a higher priority in my life and get out there and plant my seeds, hold my Mom’s hand and harvest some love to feed my spirit. Oh yeah, along the way I’ll harvest some veggies too.



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