Nothing to be done…
I awoke to snow. October 18th and a dusting of large, flat flakes frosted the deck and drifted from the gray skies. My to-do list is a mile long but it will have to wait. Today is just going to play out for me.
Some things could not be ignored. Unlike the dust on the furniture and the leaves that have blown in through the door; laundry, a run to the dump and groceries were necessary. I took time out for a quick ride down the dirt roads with Night to admire the last of the foliage.
Otherwise, I am too weak-minded to concentrate on my list. I am cooking without a recipe, literally and figuratively. Black Bean soup with ham bubbles contentedly, a hearty beef stew sits composing itself on the stove.
Every simple task along the way have me reflecting on life. Death came for Lisa on Friday and Beth is slipping away. Two women I admire who will never stand beside their car and fill it with gas. There is no longer a need to check the grocery list or worry about money spent. The minutia of life that occupies so much of my day is beyond them now. They have taken their leave of this world as will each of us when it is time.
By late afternoon the sun was finally strong, just before it slipped below the trees and ledges. Alice and I bundled up against the chill and headed up the trail to the back of our property. The earth is healing the wounds of last year’s logging operation. Thick weedy grasses are filling the deep gouges left by the log skidder and ragged stumps that sprouted life are now dressed in Autumn shades.
Therapeutic Misadventures 
Love the red – both leaves and boots! (Yes, play. More productive that most realize….and what a delight this first icing)
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Thank you Phil. It was a bit of a shock to see the white stuff this early but it can’t last. The season of seeing red is upon us!
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I know! My mother, in Massachusetts, mentioned it was snowing while we were on the phone. I didn’t believe her….
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Believe, it has to be one of the earliest on record!
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We only saw flurries here but it seems far too early even for them. I’m still hoping for a milder winter than the last two were.
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What is that saying Allen? If it snows before the ground is frozen it means a gentler winter ahead? Yes, I am sticking to that theory.
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I’ll keep my fingers crossed!
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Sorry to hear about you friends but, as you well know, now it’s time for the family and friends to begging their own journey to healing. I was not happy to see the flurries!
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Thank you Laura. Hope you have a great time with your Dad. Safe travels.
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Brrr…time to bring in the lounge chair cushions!!@!
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Yes, sadly it is time badfish. This weekend will be the Big Clean-up; take in the hoses and stack the wood.
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the end of one thing is the beginning of another (as they say)
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Indeed, badfish. Time to button up for the cold weather!!
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something is always changing somewhere
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Lovely piece, Martha. That thin blanket of snow was good reason for you to have a nothing day. A nothing day can be restorative as yours seems to have been judging by the colorful photos.
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It was just too early to see the snow amid the leaves, Joyce. Hoping for a bit of “Indian Summer” yet…
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The bean soup was the best I have had! THANK YOU.
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Glad you liked it.
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Very nice tribute to a day filled with the minutiae of life.
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Thank you Susan. There are just days like that. So happy we all have them and recognize it’s a human condition.
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Sorry for your loss. We are waiting for our own. Part of our visit to Gravenhurst in Canada was to say goodbye to cousin Katie. She is still clinging to life but, having seen her, it is willpower alone keeping her with us. They had snow while we were in Toronto but we missed it and when we got back to Gravenhurst it had gone.
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A sad part to your trip to be sure. I can not imagine losing a child. I’m glad you had time with Katie and know it will help heal the pain at some point.
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She is in a bad way but still hanging on to get her house in order I think. She hasn’t eaten for six months now due to the tumor and is fed by a tube in her arm. So hard for Maggie and Alan, her parents. Having said that, she is in good spirits for the most part.
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