cornfields left dry and standing
in late september whisper urgency
the harvest gods are impatient
for everything to be gathered in,
dried, or ground to flour,
so they can dance with light on water
before it freezes, or sleep in leaf-piles.
yes, early fall is abundance;
urgent reaping before frost, days
scented with green tomato pickle or chili sauce
because wasting what grows is not done
even though we do not trade for our harvests
any longer with blood
12 thoughts on “fall comes to the valley in whispers”
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‘…wasting what grows is not done’ … wish this were so everywhere Susan, sadly I don’t believe it to be the case
So much of what we grow as a nation is wasted. The least I can do is put up what I grow, but it does not stem the tide of waste. I just cannot tend something all year and then reject what it gives me–especially as the daughter of 2 depression babies who lived through rationing.
The dry cornfields, intimations of a wicker man, so very evocative!
David–you are good! I was thinking about wicker men, decided not to mention them at all by name, because I did that a week or so ago, and somehow you still caught my thought as it ran through that dry cornfield…
“the harvest gods are impatient
for everything to be gathered in”
Oh, that is good!
Thanks ,Mama–glad you liked it.
“even though we do not trade for our harvests
any longer with blood” – so full of feelings !!!
…perhaps if we did sacrifice something of value for a harvest (not that I am saying we should–eek, no!) perhaps we would respect it more.
I affirm improvement is always necessary but let’s not forget to affirm the good and beautiful and blessings ~Deborah
Thanks, Deb!
So true. And those here long before us, the winters they faced, the preparations they needed to make. Even in my lifetime, winters were longer and more severe than now. When I made my first trip to scout my future college, there were still residual snowbanks on 1 May.
We prepare less now, we simply retreat indoors and close the windows.
That is so true, Nelle!