and though it may be at it's peak and just at it's start at the same time, there is a sort of hushed excitement as everyone rushes off for a quick last minute vacation just when they were all about to give up on summer all together..
This last week we also have been celebrating at kismet- in a way of sorts- the veges and fruits are just starting to really come in- and though strawberry season lasted about three days long, and raspberries have yet to come in abundance, Champlain orchards shared today that they will have their first apples of the season in just two weeks, and all of our other farmer friends have been calling in to offer all sorts of veg like peppers, broccoli, cabbage, zucchini, cherry tomatoes (finally!), garlic, chantarelles, cucumbers, green beans, corn (!), and still more peas, cilantro. and basil! This is it, the time we all have been waiting for in Vermont- when there is abundance and warmth, extra sunlight, warm water, music in the air, flowers (which are particularly tall this year because they are so sun starved), and outdoor festivities.
There is too, that this time of year also brings the abundance of work and energy spent preparing for the winter- which we do wholeheartedly as we pickle and can, jam and jelly, and dry precious herbs roots and mushrooms- we watch the animals get big and fat, the wood get chopped and stacked, and under the shade of our favorite oak elm or maple, sit with tender tired muscles watching the light change as if we can see time passing... i look out over my green mountains and can imagine them black and white and crystallized- i look at my stack of pickles and wonder how many i will have left when the spring thaws come. I look at my children and watch their legs grow as they learn to swim stronger, and realize how soon it will be that we have to buy new snowsuits and boots..
All of this-- IS--- why i am here- being in Vermont requires a sort of presence that demands so much of me- it is so involved and exhausting, i rarely even have time to read the newspaper or watch tv- and at the same time, being so crudely dependant on the weather also aligns me in a way that i feel completely connected to the harsh and beautiful realities of the whole world through tasting really fresh green beans and watching as the garden overflows....
truth be told- we are all working really really hard and doing our best to make it look easy, graceful, prosperous, and fun-- and right now i am feeling that deeply.. "It's like i have been climbing a mountain and come to it's peak, ecstatic and exhausted and full of awe- and then i look out and see twelve more peaks in the distance that i will need to climb.." (phil gentile)
Before you set out on your next big trek-- come in and let us feed you- have a glass of fresh pressed juice (or a bloody mary!) and sit for a moment amongst friends- we look forward seeing you...
see you soon.
xo
crystal
