This morning I woke up early to cook for the Mother’s Day brunch we are hosting at noon today. I probably could have opted to do nothing instead of making Butternut Squash Lasagna, Asparagus Tart, Deviled Eggs, and some other treats, but I take a lot of joy in feeding people, and work though it is, it’s pleasurable work to have the people I love around me.
After everyone leaves, I’ll turn my attention to the garden if the weather holds. After weeks of nearly nonstop rain, I was able to spend some time cleaning up and working on it yesterday. Of course, now finishing it is going to be a mad rush before I have to plant, but this is a permanent structure, with finishing it being a one-time job. It needs a final fence section, a gate, some last bits of compost spread, and only 4 of the 11 garden beds got built before giant squash plants ran amok last summer. I need to be done by the beginning of June, but I’m not worried this year – I’ve got some help, and the work isn’t that daunting. And even if it is, I’ll get done what I get done. This place is the work of a lifetime.
Spring is in full bloom here, and the rain has made everything green and lush and blossoming. The school year is winding down with concerts and events absorbing our time, and summer planning is in full swing. Eli and I have some inside projects to do too – painting the downstairs hall, sanding and re-staining the front porch, and some work on the downstairs bathroom. Between that and both of our jobs, we’re likely to have a very busy and exhausting summer.
But also a lush and beautiful one. The seedlings, which are in the process of hardening off, will grow into vegetables, and herbs. Several fruit trees will be planted, new ones and a replacement for my cold-hardy cherry that didn’t survive the winter. More trees will need to come down, some of them because they are dying, others because they pose a threat to the house. Pine trees are great for wildlife but their root systems are shallow, and I’ve already had one fall on the house after a windstorm. I’m working on reducing the risk.
That’s how summer works on a farmlet. We do our share of relaxing, and there’s few things I like better than to just go out and weed in the sunshine, but from May 1st on, it’s pretty high-energy until we put the garden to bed in November.
Being a gardener is much like being a mother. You add food, water, attention and love and a home, and you hope that you aren’t too tired and flawed to muck up the growing process. Sometimes you screw up, run out of time and energy, or just wish for a break. But in the end, you hope that your children, like your garden, bloom.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing mothers out there. May you, and your children grow and thrive.
Little House on the Fairy Hill 