Becoming

"There is hardly anything in the world more exciting than something which is on the verge of becoming.



When this something is a human being,



a human personality on the verge of declaring itself,



the excitement doubles." -Louise Bates Ames

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is my favorite holiday. Once upon a time, back when we lived in a residential neighborhood, I really loved having the little (and big) trick-or-treaters come to our door, all dressed up and asking for candy. It is so fun! After living here for over seven years now, I have to face the proven fact: there ain't no child gonna come up this long country driveway in the dark on Halloween night. I can't tell you how sad that makes me. I still buy bags of candy though, "Just in case," but I'm not fooling anyone!



My son recently moved to Seattle, but before he left, he and his friend put several of his art pieces around in the garden. Its rather ghoulish, shocking even, to find a head, hidden amidst the chickweed and seeming to have sprouted out of the ground. This holiday is a celebration, and mourning, of the end of the agrarian year. Like it or not, fall has turned to winter as the seasons have indiscernibly changed. Growing and harvesting are, for the most part, done and over, and as much as I dislike winter, rest is essential to life. Since moving to the farm, I celebrate Halloween sans trick-or-treaters by making doughnut. While I'm frying and glazing, I'll contemplate the waxings and wanings in life, birth and death, the balance of work and rest -and children and heads in the garden.

Happy Halloween!