This week is the last week of the Druid Hill Park Farmers Market. (Though we’ll still be there every Wednesday for our Wild Peace Farm Fall CSA Drop!)
Marrying a farmer has brought great seasonal awareness to my life. I mean, it’s not like I never noticed the winter when I was a college student in Boston or when I was commuting to Manhattan. I wore heavy winter coats. I switched from flip-flops to boots. (And then back to flip-flops in May, when it was still freezing in Boston but I wore flip-flops anyway in protest.)
But I didn’t have the same awareness then that I have now.
Our lives, Tee’s and mine, drastically change with the seasons. During the spring, we’re excited and engaged and outdoors – Tee is gearing up for the farmers markets to begin and we feel happy and grateful to have more sunshine and daylight. In summertime, we’re incredibly busy; almost every day is a work day (with breaks for mandatory self-care) and it’s difficult to make plans with friends or to plan weekends away. All summer long, Tee keeps a list of things we’ll get done once it’s winter and we have more time.
When fall comes, things slow down – just a little – and for me, I experience a little anxiety, anticipating the cold of winter and the loss of sunlight. When I was a kid, I loved winter. I loved snow, skiing, Christmas, and my birthday. They were awesome. Winter ruled. Now, as a grown-up, it’s harder to love it. Mostly because I love being outside, and it’s more difficult and less possible to spend time outdoors in the winter.
My goal is to appreciate all the seasons for what they offer. This fall, I want to appreciate the amazing colors – denim jacket weather – running without intensive sweating – bonfires – pumpkins – winter squash – and more. I think that the rhythm of the seasons helps to keep us all in balance. And even though I occasionally daydream about moving to Hawaii, I do truly love living in a state that lets me experience all the seasons of the year in their unique splendor.
