Tuesday, March 22, 2011

our first autumn Equinox here at Villa Maria

yes. the wheel of the year has turned once again and we celebrate our first autumn equinox at Villa Maria. and once again instead of trying to do all my little ritual & such in oneday, I am doing it over the next month.. makes alot more sense to me

the garden doesn't have the same intensity of change of seasons here..as was at Inglewood. the temperature is a little warmer here in Springwood. eventually when my garden is where I want it to be, I am sure there will be alot more evidence of the changing of the seasons.

'Going through your personal gardens with thanks'
most of the summer vegies are coming to an end - basil, cucumbers & tomatoes all ready to be pulled out.. but the rain has been stopping me. it has been a wet month so far. I am desperate to get out there and do some autumn work. my favourite time of the year. the oregano along the path is showing signs of autumn and in need of a huge trim. the sedum 'autumn joy' is coming into flower, promising beautiful heads of crimson which will feed butterflies & bees throughout winter and into spring.


the oranges are once again laden with fruit - cannot wait until I can pick my own oranges once again. last year when I first moved in, those oranges are what kept me going.. they were so sweet & juicy.

'A feast for family always provides a cheerful abundance of energy and thanks'
Lamb cooked slowly in my tagine - flavoured with tumeric, cinnamon, saffron & bay leaves.. all brilliant autumnal colours!

Autumn is slipping through summer's branches & I am listening.
I am listening to the dying flowing forth from autumn's being.
I am listening to the life hidden in the dying .
I am listening to the song of transformation
to the wisdom of the season,
to the losses and the grieving,
to the turning loose and letting go.
I am listening to the surrender of autumn
I am listening to the miracle
of crumbling leaves becoming earth again.
I am listening to the beauty and fragility of aging.
I am listening to a call for inner growth,
to my need to let go of material possessions,
to my need to reach our for invisble gifts.
[Joyce Rupp] (given to me by Sr. Jacinta - facilitator of my Benedictine Cosmology Group]

4 comments:

foxysue said...

I love how you wind your way through the seasons, noticing everything on your path, life is good and I'm happy I visited you here today!

Love Sue x

Fire Byrd said...

Like that poem and your words about the wonders of your garden. It is such a joy to be old enough to take lifes small pleasures and know that they are enough. And that slowly ( well in my case!) material things do not give what they once did to make life happy. Ok I still like new clothes, but the birds song makes me happier on a daily basis.
xx

rebecca said...

lovely...honoring my friend.

as you harvest your bounty...i am just considering seeds....placement, dreams!

i am preparing to leave for boston. i have been asked to be a representative of the pompes community. our beginning of paving the way to a brighter future begins with an advisory meeting at genzyme headquarters.

planting seeds as i go!!

amelia said...

I can only dream of picking oranges from my own orange tree. I remember when you posted a long time ago, about picking lemons from your garden, again, I can't imagine the joy.

You are going into winter and we are in spring although it's still -15 this morning with two feet of ice on the lake and four feet of snow in our snowbanks!!

"She seemed to come suddenly upon happiness as if she had surprised a butterfly in the Winter woods"
(edith wharton)