longer shorter days

It is officially fall now. I have been noticing the lowering of the sun for awhile, though the weather continues to be mostly summery and perfect. The days may be shorter, but in some ways they feel longer now that Sam is no longer napping. When Denis has a heavy week, and I am doing most or all childcare for days at a time, I am so spent after putting him to bed. Last night I sat on the front stoop with a mudslide and noticed signs of fall as twilight descended.


Leeks were a favorite fall crop back on the farm crew. I loved trimming the long leaves into a tidy 'V' shape with the quick slash of a knife. The fields would be frosty in the mornings, our large summer crew gone, and I would carry a 5-gallon bucket of hot water in the back of the truck to warm up my freezing dewy fingers between harvesting the arugula and whatever else wasn't winter-killed.


Fall, if not my job, is milder here of course. Our winter kale plants are only newly planted seedlings, stretching up from the mulch all green and blue.