Harvest

   "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17

  I had planned on writing earlier today. Human plans, right?

  A fierce storm last night brought down a large tree branch. Right across the driveway. The old apple tree is failing. It's loaded with apples this year so I guess the ole gal couldn't handle the combination of wind, wet and weight.

  So instead of writing, I ended up chopping wood, gathering fallen apples and burning the smaller branches. It took a while. Enough time to harvest the basil and get it in the oven to dry. Purple beans were also gathered to be blanched and frozen.

  I kept an eye on the fire and puttered around the garden.

  The cucumbers needed some leaves trimmed off to make the flowers more visible. This also lets the plant spend more energy on the cukes themselves.   

  The black currants needed picking, too. They are coming along nicely and while it may be a good year for apples, the currants, not so much. They are rather finicky but it pays to take the time to pinch off the shriveled flower head as I go along. A scant harvest makes each berry precious because I use them to make cordial. It means we can enjoy the harvest in the dead of winter by adding a taste of summer sun to a cup of tea. 

  It can't be all work especially when it is a hot, muggy, thunderstorm growing kind of day. I enjoyed a few delightful moments wandering barefoot through the shaded yard, relishing the feel of the cool grass. There was an ulterior motive, though, each patch of clover was scrutinized, studied to find the ones that maybe, just maybe, have four leaves.

  Truthfully, it's not much of a hunt because I know roughly where they've been previous years. Once you find one, chances are there are more in the vicinity. There were several but I only collected two, leaving the others to continue the fun of the hunt another day. 

  The collection keeps growing, gathered through the years. Not all of them are from my own yard. I've found them in other places, too. Maybe it's because I take the time to look. All I know is they bring a little spark of childish delight to my heart and finding one always makes me smile.

  I remember visiting a family friend of my dad's when I was a little girl. They lived in rural New Brunswick so we'd camp in their yard. Carefully pressed inside an old, hardbacked, musty book was the first four leafed clover I'd ever seen. It was massive! In the way of children, I remember thinking that, one day, I'd find one, too! 

  It has nothing to do with them being a luck talisman. It has to do with cherishing the innocent dreams of a child. Dreams that God saw fit to fulfill. And in the way that God sometimes does, it has been a greater answer than I could have possibly imagined.

  You see, I lost my first clover collection. Gathered years after a little girl dreamed. Many four leafers were found in a huge clover patch just outside the henhouse. If memory serves, that's where I found my very first one. Where there's one, there's always more. The collection was left behind when the old life ended.

  Yet God saw fit to provide a new collection. So if He is faithful in restoring such a small thing, a childish fancy, I need to believe there are much greater things in store.

  The first anniversary of my step-dad's passing was a couple of days ago yet I find myself being able to spend time with the family I never knew I had until he was gone. I'm really looking forward to seeing them.

  God is good.