September 18, 2017

Harvest Time

There something about harvest time that is paradoxical. As everything comes to fruit it also decays. The tomatoes ripen red, plums soften and are perfectly purple, pears become plump slowly becoming the amazing fruit that they are. At the same time voles and moles nibble on the tomatoes and peppers, leaving holes that turn to mould and rot. Leaves on the zucchini plants wither and drop exposing the squash that hid all summer and now lays massive and golden. With the cold nights basil gives up to blossom and begins to look old and hardened. Kale thrives in this harvest time, as it recovers from the hot of the summer and thrives showing off in these cooler nights. The brussels sprouts have taken on new life enjoying this colder time and the seeds from the early summer lettuce, that went to seed , now sprout everywhere, growing with intensity. Leaves have begun to colour and drop having held on an extra week or so fooled by the smoke and heat. Tomatoes, onions, peppers, basil, thyme, rosemary, sage, simmer in the oven for hours so that the summer flavours are maintained and captured for those bleak winter moments.

Carrot seeds, parsnip and lovage seed have sprinkled about the garden and now in the cool they germinate amongst the decay of the summer garden. Transitions. We long for them, dread them, become overwhelmed by them and they happen anyway. Summer becomes autumn, autumn, winter then spring and summer. The certainty of transition is a constant in our lives. This autumn I have chosen as a time for renewal, allowing a whole new way of being in my life. One where transitions can be easeful and filled with the joy that change and creativity can bring.

Our classes have begun this fall. There is knitting being learned, and I have begun to understand the basics of crochet. If you have a desire to learn something new or develop a burgeoning knitting skill I invite you to join our masters.

We begin our master knitter series with Margaret McKechnie. She is going to be teaching us the art of knitting a sock. Margaret has been knitting for 64 years and her Scottish heritage has been filled with “hand work”. For centuries knitting socks was a necessity and both men and women sat in their quiet moments knitting and mending socks. Today we have amazing yarn for socks and Margaret will be teaching us the traditional approach to knitting a sock, top down. Learning to knit socks with Margaret begins Thursday, October 5th from 1pm – 3pm. It runs for 3 weeks and is $75.00.

We invite you to joy us in discovering a new art or to deepen your understanding of the art of knitting the sock. Join us in our new learning space to engage in the joy that hand work can bring to your quiet times.

With Gratitude, Kathleen