Are You Experiencing the Fall-Shift?

You may not be a farmer or gardener, so perhaps you are not so aware of the seasons. However, I think we all experience a fall, or seasonal shift to our activities and focus. The very weather changes bring a change to our lives.

Have you started wearing winter clothing, and have your boots handy at the door? I have.

My garden and yard cleanup is done. (Well, except for two large mouse-traps that need to be cleaned yet... as soon as I work up the nerve).

But now I focus quite intently on doing a more thorough cleanup of each room in my house and get rid of things I'm not using.

Do the prospects look overwhelming to you? Are you plotting your Christmas shopping and entertaining already? Getting all your lights and decorations lined up to decorate your house?

I don't take time for decorations, etc., but....

I sure cringed at what I thought was going to take me clear up to spring or next summer... Until I scribbled out a list of the rooms and areas where I needed to sort and remove stuff that I should dispose of (garbage or second-hand shops). When I broke my list down to the shelf-units along each wall of the basement, I suddenly saw that if I worked at it diligently - not just on Saturdays, but the same amount of time I gave the garden after supper Monday through Fridays in the summer, which involved a lot of repetition - especially the weeding!

Now I think: I may be all done in just 2-3 months. There may be time to spare for the mending and sewing I've put off so long.

I miss being out in the garden and fresh air, but having a real workable plan revives me and helps me to be grateful for the change of seasons.

Wasn't God ever wise to invent seasons for us?

<*> TIPS & SOLUTIONS: <*>

Wee Little Indoor Gardens

Cleaning up some old crockpots in the pantry, I recalled that it is possible to grow little mini-gardens indoors. I decided to try it.

I cut the cord off one that didn't work, filled it with dirt from the garden, and dug up just one clump of chives to plant in it. (I like to cut up a pinch of chives to add to a dish).

Of course, any container or bucket will do.

Then I found another crockpot that was useless for cooking and sitting idle. I filled it with a mix of garden dirt and some peat moss. Then I broke off about 5 to 6 cloves of garlic from a bulb in the fridge, and stuck them into the soil. That was Saturday.

This morning while eating breakfast I wondered if anything was coming up there yet. They are suppose to shoot up a sprout in 7 days. At any rate, it might need water. I had to step up a step-stool and onto a desk to get a good look.

Sure enough! 3 cloves have sprouted a stem above each of them! This in only three days!

It is possible to do a bit of gardening here and there inside your home. I dare you to try it!

[Back to Archives Index ] ~~ [Back to Main RoseBouquet Page]