The Great Awakening

Today was a delicious day packed with different weather patterns and full of activity. Blue skies in the morning, perfect for tilling up the garden, forming the beds, pruning all the fruit trees, (yes, I know it's a peculiar time of the year to be pruning, but it just felt right, and it's always worked before!), pruning the roses in the back garden (ditto, above!), digging the dandelions. In French, they're called 'dents des lions' which means teeth of lions, and I could almost hear them growling at me as I carefully removed them in one piece, tap root intact! It's so exciting to see that all the roses made it through the winter unscathed, and all have lots of strong, new growth starting up around the bottom of each bare stock. The climbing rose is totally out of control, and when things are just beginning to come alive, the old rambler is simply covered with new growth. It'll be a sight for sore eyes a little later on. We have added a couple of plum trees this week to our developing orchard, a generous gift from Sim and Lionel Fortin. Next week we plan to add another pear, a couple of apples, and a pair of cherries. That should do it for a while. There are forget-me-nots all over the place which gives a wonderfully domesticated feel about the place, despite the fact that our old chum, the naughty Black Bear, has come a few times to reorganize this and that. He wasn't at all sure that he liked the squirrel feeding station, and took tremendous pains to tear it all apart. Very clever of him to remove the squirrel house from the tree! He had to lift it up an inch or two and then pull. He tried to take the bench off the porch, but it proved too cumbersome for him, so he left his mark on it before stomping off. It's so lovely that we can all live in harmony with each other! A little heaven on earth...

To The Garden He Came

To the garden he came, silent and heavy.

To the garden he came, sorrowful, pleading.

In the dark of night he came,

Fording Kedron Brook he came,

Needing his Father he came

To pray.

He bade them to stay, except for the three.

He bade them to pray, on bended knee.

And so he went, and fell on his face,

And so He wept: Abba, gratiam Tuam da!

In the garden of Olives, all alone,

He relinquished His will to His Father's plan.

He relinquished His blood in the sweat that flowed

From His brow, in the garden, all alone.

He returned to the three, the sleeping three.

O, could you not stay on bended knee?

How weak is the flesh, yet the spirit strong!

Watch and pray. Watch and pray.

The chant is carried to us today.

The breeze soughed gently, that dreadful night,

The dove felt the rustling, took to flight.

The fruit of the trees, the olive trees,

Wept with Creator, wept in the night.

Wept throughout ages, that believers might

Along with the dove, feel the Saviour's plight.

Drink deeply, often, of the olive tree,

And remember the prayers that were prayed for thee.

Remember the Wind, the Oil and the Dove.

Remember the Anguish that was snuffed out by Love.

Remember, remember the Fruit of the Tree!

It seems like yesterday....

Once upon a time, when our family was almost new, Soe Woe and I went to pick up Hannah and Emi from their school, the Equinox School, up in Dorset Hollow in Southern Vermont. The school was started by a handful of parents who were looking for something exceptional for our children. We found it on our back doorstep, among our own friends, with the leadership of Ron Reuben, headmaster extraordinaire. We loved all the teachers. We loved the daily ebb and flow of the teaching program. We absogoshdarnlutely loved each other. Soe couldn't wait to join the gang in the following school year. She couldn't wait to learn those circle song-games like "Oats, Peas, Beans, and Barley Grow", and "Go In and Out The Windows". Dawn Pliner, the mother of her very mostest best friend, Aura~Joy, would be her Kindergarten teacher. And then, just like that, we were gone. Gone from all that we held near and dear. Sadly, we took all the sheep up to live with the John Thorssin family up in the Hollow. We packed up our meagre belongings in the U~Haul, and we were gone. Goodbye house and barn. Goodbye dear ones. Goodbye Equinox School. Goodbye Mach's Market. Goodbye Mill Pond and ducks.
Hello Boothbay Harbour, hello home-schooling, hello new world and new friends...but the sadness of leaving Vermont is engraven on our hearts forever. It was April 17th 1985: Soe's 5th birthday...

So, here's the orignal...

LEISURE ... by William H. Davies

What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs And stare as long as sheep and cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass, Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight, Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance, And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait 'til her mouth can Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this, if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.

With sincere apologies to WH Davies...

What is this life if, when cobwebs clog,

We have no time to sit and blog.

No time to gaze into our dreams

And write, contented, near the streams.

No time to see, when snowflakes fall,

The stately pines, majestic, tall.

No time to share the beauty found

Along the woodland's mossy ground.

No time to wait, to linger long,

To hear the earth's sweet, mirthful song.

A poor life this if, full of care,

We have no time to stop and stare.

Happy Birthday, Moses!

In the first year of my life, lots of amazing things have happened, just a few of them are worth setting down for biographical posterity!
Let's see now, I think we'll start with those things which I wish had been mastered, and yet look forward to this coming year when they will be, for sure:
1. Swimming. I'm not 100% sure that this is an enjoyable passtime. Last year the river was so high and raging from all the rain, that it took all my courage to follow Sadie in to retrieve various sticks, and each time I ventured forth, my life (short, as it was) flashed before me. Mama Sally tried her level best to convince me that this was what I was supposed to love by going in with all her clothes on, but the resulting image was so alarming, that all of my worst fears were confirmed, and I ran from the river with my tail firmly tucked!
2. Come! Yes, well, there's a very good reason why this command hasn't yet been mastered. First of all, when I was little, we went to Obedience School. I loved it! I made lots of friends and was rewarded with delicious bits of something or other every time I did whatever it was that was asked of me. Later, we'd practice, and again the treats were forth-coming. Now, when I Sit!, Stay!, or Come!, okay, there's a pat on the head, or a 'Good boy!', but hey, where are the treats? I mean! So now, when Mama Sally calls me, I look at her and then sit down! I'm trying to teach her to remember the treats, and I believe she is beginning to understand! Boys, some humans are really hard to train!
Let's look at some things that have transpired in this first year: some good, some not so good (apparently!):
1. I'm a great retriever.
2. I like to nose around in the waste-paper baskets.
3. My favourite things to chew are loo-paper holders, gloves, socks, fat-wood, and paper towels with bacon drippings on them.
4. I do have a basket full of toys. These keep me occupied when the above aren't around.
5. I just adore to eat Sadie's poos! Mama Sally says O God and walks away, but Papa runs at me screaming, which only makes the game more fun! Sometimes, I'll run away, and he thinks he's fixed it, but then I sneak back and get the rest when he's far away!
6. It rarely happens, but when Mama Sally is sick, Sadie and I are allowed to lie on the bed and make her feel better. We get lots of treats during these times.
7. Sometimes, Sadie and I get to go to the Oasis Pet Resort and Spa. We get to play with lots of friends and get our pedicures, groomings and shampooings done. We like to spend a little time here, yet sometimes, we've had to stay a bit too long, and we miss our walks in the woods.
8. A rare treat is when Cooper and Cabot come to visit. They're urbanites and live in Burlington, but you'd never know it. They fall right into place up here in the Northeast Kingdom, especially when Cabot wears his orange collar!
All in all, it's been a pretty fantastic first year, and I think I shall go outside and chase a red squirrel to celebrate birthday #1!

A Lullaby For Sapphie

Lulla, lulla, lulla, lulla-bysie,

Do you want the moon to play with?

Or the stars to run away with?

They will come if you don't cry.

Lulla, lulla, lulla, lulla-bysie,

In Mama's arms a-keeping,

And soon you'll be a-sleeping,

Sing lulla, lulla, lulla, lulla-by.