The smoke is back, low-hanging and thick
As I turned and straighten bales, I thought to myself
How the low-hanging smoke closes in on the earth
Making the farm feel silent
Reminding each of us, how fragile we really are.
The sun turns red; the sky orange and yellow
Creating a restless foreboding…a sense of doom.
Your friend on a western Colorado farm,
Linda
The sky, the air, the light
Has all changed.
Terry says it feels like the middle of September now
I agree with him.
Autumn/Fall is early this year.
Maybe it (Autumn) will linger on longer than normal,
Allowing those of us who are very fond of this time of year,
(See the spider in her web…waiting, waiting…shudder)
To enjoy its perfection.
From my world to your heart,
Linda
“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes….Including you.” –Anne Lamott
Our internet service was down yesterday until late, late in the day.
Thankfully it is back now.
Although, it isn’t as important as heat, water, and electricity…it is important. 🙂
Your friend on a western Colorado farm,
Linda
“Farms, any farms, well, all Farms have Tractors”, Mom picked me up and sat me down on her lap. I was trying to hide because Dad had just started one of his tractors and was heading out of the farmyard. “You are right to run fast away from big noisy machines, of which tractors are one.”
Mom and I sat down in one of the outside chairs, me on Mom’s lap, and Mom’s hand petting me.
“You see, TLC Cai-Cai, Tractors are how all the groundwork gets done. Tractors are the ‘heavy-lifter’s of the farm, they pull implements to make the soil on the farm in a very lovely soft loamy state so Dad can then plant the fields. The tractors even pull the planter which does the planting.
Then there is the water, tractors use special pieces of equipment which make the ditches and help keep the ditches clean so the water can flow onto the farm, and down the rows, the tractor created right after the crop was planted.
There are other BIG pieces of equipment on the farm, like the swather and the combine, but I will save that for another time. For right now just know that there are many tractors on the farm, and each one has its own special job to do.” Mom said softly to me all the while petting my head, my ears, my back, my sides, my…………smile purr. Humm.
“I am so proud of you for being very careful around all the tractors and the big noisy things like cars and trucks, for Dad and I want you with us for years and years and years.” Mom whispered—“years.”
I really am not sure all of what Mom was saying, I was purring very, very loud, while Mom talked softly to me and petted me. I kept on purring until I think I must have fallen asleep.
Which is a very lovely thing. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
TLC Cai-Cai
Everything and everyone is a part of a pattern
Although, if taken separately they seem disconnected
Each tiny piece streaming through space and time
Filling our senses with wonder
And a sweet little message which says: We are all one.
From my world to your heart,
Linda
Terry is out cutting the second field of alfalfa, one more to cut after this one. Then we wait for it to dry, so Terry can bale it.
The waning days of Summer are here, at least where we live and farm
There is still time to enjoy the warmth of the day and the cool of the evening.
And August’s full moon, as it scuds through the early morning sky
I love how moonlight feels—a brilliant bright flow of silver
Etched in shadows of corn or tree leaves or branches. Always lovely.
Sometimes covered in clouds,
Sometimes not, there is no heat to the Moon; just a shimmer of silver flooding the earth and everyone on it.
From my heart to your world,
Linda
Terry got the conditioner fixed
the swather all re-conditioned and put back together
The hot and jagged Summer days are waning now
The days starting to grow shorter, the sky taking on a different feel, although the sun is still strong. Strong enough to MAKE HAY!
The third cutting of hay signals the end of Summer. (although, it will take a few weeks to get true fall).
Your friend on a western Colorado farm,
Linda
This is not a painting, but a photo at just the right moment in time.
A gift, most rare and beautiful.
From my world to your heart,
Linda
Mom says we will get back to all about ‘Running a Farm’ next week, but for right now, there is REJOICING in the House and on the Farm.
It started raining and
it hasn’t really stopped.
As for me—
I’m not sure about this rain stuff.
TLC Cai-Cai
The Blue Skies came back…Blue Skies in the middle of the sky, which was ever so lovely
The conditioner on the swather broke–the conditioner is where the cut alfalfa is rolled up to crip the stems (so they can dry) and then gathered together to lay in lovely neat rows for the baler.
So, I was helping Terry move the conditioner to the shop where he could repair it
when I looked down and saw a rock the tractor just drove over.
It was a HEART! The tractor broke it! Sometimes the load is just too heavy, even for a rock.
It is now home in my Rock Garden, put together (sorta) resting with all the hearts I have living there.
Your friend on a western Colorado farm,
Linda
Life on a Colorado Farm 