Frosty Rain

 

Time races by and the summer seems like a distant but pleasant memory that slipped out of reach like a retreating tide. It is the time for opening a jar of relish made in the fall, butternut squash soup, adding another log to the wood stove, and watching the birds who have found the bowed heads of the sunflower stalks praying for Spring.

It is a time for dreaming and planning projects, praying that the snow blower starts, and marveling at the oasis of life in the barn, and the dried hay that keeps the creatures fed and warm, and smells of other seasons.

Kennebunkport Dock Square Snow Fall

 

It is the morning after Solstice and this picture was taken in Dock Square, Kennebunkport, after stopping into a local candy shop. I almost never consider shopping in Dock Square, because it feels like something only tourists do, but it felt more like the holiday yesterday morning walking around the smal shops with the snow falling. It reminded me of the first time I drove through Dock Square in the 80's and was captivated by the little bridge, the boats, the smell of salt water, and the sounds of gulls. It is easy to understand why it is a favorite destination for tourists.

I am not one of those who is at the beach, surfs or fishes on a regular basis, but when I am near the water, I wonder how it is that people can live away from it? Watching the snow fall on the shops, the overcast morning light, the smell of coffee coming from somewhere, it felt like the gentle start of something new, the yer beginning again, being at that point where you realize that every end carries the seeds of a beginning.

 

Getting Ready for Winter

 

Bojangles the cat and Cody the Pug have already assumed, or resumed their Winter positions by the wood stove. Cody is the fire marshal around the farm and takes his job very seriously. Most days he will rarely leave his post except to conduct a brief bit of business outdoors, and "help" in the kitchen during meal prep.

Apple Slices

 

The apple harvest is nearing the end of the season. A couple cold nights seemed to have sweetened the apples that remain on the trees. To the delight of the goats the wind and time has felled enough apples that the apple trees are the first place they run, like children, during recess, when the barn door is opened for them.