The Day After

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of the year and brings families and friends together one last time before Christmas. Many people in the world this year are suffering from mother natures wrath with floods, earth quakes and mudslides. We do have much to be thankful for living in this great country with few climate related tragedies.

As I prepare for departure to the south I clean up little chores. One thing I love to do is to empty the remaining food for the bird feeders and the peanuts for the chip monks and squirrels.It is amusing and entertaining to see just how many peanuts a chip monk can stuff in that double sided pouch. They are so fast in delivering their burden to the secret hiding place and returning for another load.

The black squirrels eat most of their new found bounty or bury it close to guard against sharing. The birds generally will sit together and share the seeds except for the blue jays who dominate the scene. It is a competitive out there for wild animals and birds.

Cutting down the last flowers and vegetables leaves a scene of preparedness as the ground is ready for next years planting. This year is considered an excellent crop year in our area.I collect the seeds and carefully bottle and label each one for next year.It is amazing how much you save by doing this and you know you have proven stock. Drying the bulbs and replanting is fun but somehow we forget how they multiply and sharing is a necessity. This year we ended up with over 600 daffodil bulbs. We planted 100 three years ago.

One chore I could do without is wrapping the cedars and Alberta spruce. Burlap cut to size and carefully placed around the trees reminds me of a dressmaker unfurling cloth around a model to create a masterpiece. When I complete my work it is not a masterpiece and never looks very good.

The last wheelbarrow of compost is spread over the garden and lawn and it is retired for the winter. The tools are stored and lights and ornaments taken in and cleaned and placed where they have been every year. I close the storage shed and garage door until Christmas. Oh yes I take out the snow shovel and snow scoop and place it close at hand for our return at Christmas. Another season is complete and we begin the cycle all over again.

Life is wonderful.