- Wendell Berry
Today I noticed a sweater hanging on the hook in the hall; it was pulled out on one of the first chilly evenings spent star gazing in the back yard recently. This reminded me that in September it will be one year since our move. We've made it through a cycle.
I am thankful for the inner push that wouldn't quiet till it had come home. I used to feel that I struggled with impatience; I don't feel that any more.
What a year on this little farmette....small steps in the right direction.
Children going slowly and syncing into place
wearing out their boots
preserving
"It is possible, as I have learned again and again, to be in one's place, in such company, wild or domestic, and with such pleasure, that one cannot think of another place that one would prefer to be - or of another place at all." - Wendell Berry
I am a bit envious of what I imagine your farmette life is... Possibly it is a million times harder and less romantic than in my imagination......
ReplyDeleteWe made our first vegetable garden attempt this summer and I was pleasantly surprised to find that me, a born and raised supermarket suburb girl could actually grow things to EAT. Next canning.
Our pastor frequently quotes Wendell Berry.
Oh, you'd be right to believe there's plenty of unromantic muck shoveling, but believing in what you're doing gives you the momentum to deal with the hard stuff.
ReplyDeleteThat's great that you've started to garden! I returned to my childhood roots three years ago with a small plot in the back of our city row house; once the bug bit there was no turning back. There's nothing like producing your own food...even if it's just a little to start : )
Pondering over the first quote (? or something original) in this post. Not truly understanding this. A change of heart or values with practice - it is going over my head.
ReplyDeleteoh forgot to say, in my confusion, what a thoughtful post this is.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Diana.
ReplyDeleteIt is a Wendell Berry quote...sometimes my paragraph breaks appear differently when I post with this template.
"...withOUT a practice" I understand it to mean that you can say things are important to you, but unless you adopt a lifestyle that reflects those beliefs, you haven't really accomplished anything. It reminds me of a quote (I don't know who originally said it) "There is no love, but the act of loving."
I've been reading a lot of Berry lately and I guess this post was a little dedication. A few years ago one of his poems inspired my landscape series. It is magic when you find a writer who helps you deliver your thoughts...who you know must have, for a moment at least, shared them...then found a beautiful way to offer them to the world.
Do you have a writer(s) that influences your work right now?