The Long Weekend

Memorial Day weekend is special. Not just for what it was created to represent, which is of great importance, but for its "release" factor for me. Classes are done til September, and the promise of summer hangs in the air, sweet and ripe as a tree full of Chilton County peaches. Now, I am not a summertime person, really; I don't look good in a swimsuit and the humidity makes my hair frizz. Ever seen Professor Trelawney in the Harry Potter films? Come July, that's me. But still, it is a time of some freedom, and trips to the Farmer's Market, and a road trip here and there. Oh, and corn on the cob. That is reason enough alone for summer to come.

So we had a three-day weekend and spent much of it doing much-needed yard work. I finally got some herbs, tomatoes and peppers planted (yes I know it's late!) and put some ornamantal horsetail grasses out in the front yard which look very nice. Marcella accidentally called them "horsefeathers" once, so they shall be horsefeathers to me forever.

Working outside always makes me introspective. It's like walking beside the sea - somehow the mind is allowed to unwind and move in directions it does not ordinarily have to go. Sunday, I found myself thinking about getting older. I'll be 48 this year, and I don't feel much different than I did 20 years ago. Well, except for some aches and pains, and I can't stay up as late as I used to. If you really stop and think about it, it'll take your breath away - the passage of time, the fear of time running out before you get to do the things that are dear to your heart. I'm not afraid of death, but I am afraid of being old, or sick, and unable to do things for myself. I'm afraid of never getting to see more of the world, afraid of not ever having time to do all the crafts and things rolling around in my head and filling my notebooks and file folders. Days like that, time feels short. We humans live a pitifully short time, but we go on like it'll last forever. I get a feeling of great urgency when I think this way, and it pulls me out of my comfortable rut. That's not necessarily a bad thing. All I know is, I'm going to Scotland within the next 2 years. That's a goal.

OK, enough philosophizin'......I'm getting weary of myself!

We went to some yard sales on Saturday, and bought a really sweet child's chest-of-drawers made from old wooden crates that we think was meant for doll clothes. We're going to use it as an end table for the loveseat in the kitchen. We also got two old wire baskets that are just beautiful, from local egg farms. They have the the farmers' names on metal plates on the fronts. Still trying to figure where to put them in the kitchen.

We're also planning VACATION TIME......I can't wait. We're going up to North Carolina for the Highland Games at Grandfather Mountain in July. We've rented a lovely stone cottage at the foot of Beech Mountain near Banner Elk. I love the Blue Ridge. Going to the top of Mt. Mitchell is a pilgrimage. If I had to choose another place to live, it would be the North Carolina mountains. We're meeting some friends at the Games, and going looking for local crafts and flea markets. That'll be a blog post all its own.


Happy summer, everybody.