Race

We walked the Gardens this evening. That is our usual ritual as the Daylight, the Chickens, and we 3 C's prepare for bed. It's one of my favorite times. Our chores are pretty much done. We just walk about the Plants, checking in with them as if they are Good Friends of the more stationery variety.

After the often intense activity of the day, the teachings of the Plants and the Land are more clear during this time. It is almost as if when we still our own frenetic energy and our own agendas for the Land, the quiet voices of the Plants and the Land can at last be heard. These are our musings on these things on this beautiful Late Summer Day.

These days, we are watching carefully the triumphs and challenges of our Plant Friends. Melanie said "It's like a race. Which will be 1st: the Tomatoes or the Wilt?" After all the intense challenges of the season so far, do the Plants have enough vital energy to complete their cycle?

We held them as little Seeds, with all the promise and wonder that Seeds can hold. We made a commitment to raise them with all the growing skills we have. They made a tender promise to feed us. Some have. Some will. Some won't. Some have made it. Many have not.

In tending these Plants, the Gardens and this Land, they tend us. We see deeply the connection between Survival of the People and the Planet's cycles. We are filled with a mix of honor, gratitude, awe, sadness, humility and joy.