Some people believe autumn is depressing – the sign of the death to come – trees, plants and hot days. They anticipate with dread – the snows, the storms and the horrible cold of winter. I am the opposite. I live for now. Autumn is the most revitalizing, anticipated season for me.
The many colors of autumn.
The colors of autumn show their power in red maple trees, vibrant yellow of aspens or poplar trees and the wine/red of willows that line the sloughs. The air is crisp and fresh. Nothing is drooping from heat. The energy is so welcome. No longer do I force myself to do activities. Now I wake up fresh and ready to face the day with real energy. There is no longer the knowledge of ‘have to’ – but instead the realization of want to.
Not too much changes in our home activities. Saturdays are spent cleaning the house – my sister washes our hardwood huge kitchen floor, using paste-wax. I wax it and together, using cloths, we polish it to a glossy shine. There is no hydro and there is no varnish covering the hardwood. Maybe my sister likes it, I don’t. It is confining, staying in the house instead of outside. But there are good things in everything. Saturday is the day my mother bakes copious amounts of bread loaves for the week. For a time I like that sliced, dry store bread but it is short-lived. Nothing can compete with fresh baked bread. It is still my favorite smell – fresh baking bread combined with paste wax. After we completed our tasks and have the house sparkling clean – mom gave us home-made butter on warm bread. Heaven. I can think of no better word to describe it.
St, James Catholic Church we attend in town.
The road is still clear and we go to church on Sundays. We still meet with friends and relatives for Sunday dinners. We still have our cousins to play with. There is no difference, except we also have our school friends to play with as well. Every one of our aunts and my mother cannot be surpassed for cooking delicious food. There is still laughter, card-playing and so many kids to play with on Sunday, our day of rest. Our uncles from British Columbia visit. They bring boxes of fruit to add to our growing piles of vegetables. Try a fresh piece of warm bread with butter with a fresh peach or pear. A meal all by itself – or an appetizer for us.
I learned one important lesson. If you are poor – it’s best to be poor on a farm. You don’t notice it so much.
Now I must go – does anyone know where I can buy a butter-churn? I think I’ll bake some bread and let the memories flow.
Snow before tree branches are barren. Yellows peek through.
Mary M. Forbes - Author 