Sunday 2 September 2018

Hello September . . .


We sit now in September . . . summer is beginning to wane. How did that happen? We did not notice the days passing . . . and now they are spent. April's promise has come true, against skies of blue, thickly fruited boughs are spread with russet, greens, reds and golds . . . and orchard air hums with the sound of fruit pickers, their laughter and song carrying out across field and furrow . . . 

Tis the quiet time for the birds. Down in the woods, where shadows lie darkly under the heavy foliage of late summer . . . the hedgerows lay silent. Where now is the whitethroat . . . the blackcap . . . the warbler??

The lark, too . . . holds his peace. The skies seem lonely without his song.


 Old plum trees hang with fruit . . . cracked plums alive with the hum and buzz of greedy wasps as they cluster thickly over their surface, drinking in all that they can hold . . . nectar sweet.

Apples turn ruby cheeked faces to the sun, whilst pears hang down . . . ripe and juicy on over-burdened branches.

The fields are ready, corn waits patiently for the threshers to come, cut and stacked it lays . . . soon to be not much more than stubble waiting for the heavy cut of the plough. 

Upon the commons, moors and heath, carpets of heather . . . now pink and plum . . . mauve and lavender . . . white . . . spread out in vistas of untold beauty, beneath the gilded sky. 


The light is somehow different now . . . whilst in the garden roses bud for the second time, their blooms the last hurrah of summer, as petals wilt and wither beneath the waning sun, leaving behind scarlet globes . . . hips, ripe and flushed . . . ready for prodding and greedy beaks. All too soon, the feasting will be done. 

Purple jewels hang upon thorny branches . . . ripe for the picking . . . waiting to be made into cobblers and pies . . . jams and jellies. 



Tis that time of year . . . the hour of maturity . . . the season of fruit and fulfillment, of gathering and garnering . . .

Just around the corner now . . . beds are calling, singing plaintive wistful sounds, beckoning . . . tis almost time for the long cold sleep. Time to gather in . . . time to gather in . . .  



I think autumn is one of my favourite seasons of the year. I love the smells, the sounds . . . that crisp feeling in the air, the sight of turning leaves.  I love being able to cook heartier fare . . . soups, stews, casseroles . . . apple pies . . .

When my children were growing up the kitchen smelled like vinegar and spices as I pickled and preserved the last of the summer's bounty. I was right in my element.  I felt like Mother-Earth. It was a lovely place to be.  Miss those days . . .  

  

The Mayflower in Plymouth Harbour
by William Hallsall 

I love doing Geneology and researching Family History. I always have done. It is something which my Aunt Freda and I had in common. It was always said that some in our family had come over to America on the Mayflower.  Yesterday I made the connection.  John Tilley (of Hemlow, Bedfordshire), his wife Joan (Hurst) Tilley and their daughter Elizabeth (13).  John and Joan both perished that first winter in the New World, but their orphaned daughter Elizabeth went on to marry fellow passenger John Howland, and together they had ten children and 88 grandchildren, with millions of descendants living today. 

Here are some of their noteable direct descendants: 

Presidents Franklin D Roosevelt, and both George Bush's
First ladies Edith Roosevelt and Barbara Bush
Poets Ralph Waldo Emmerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Florence Earle Coates
Thespians Christopher Lloyd, Humprey Bogart, Maud Adams, Anthony Perkins, Lillian Russell, the Baldwin brothers (Daniel, Alec, Stephen and  William), Chevy Chase
Latter Day Saints Joseph Smith (first president and founder of the church), Emma Hale Smith (his wife), Brigham Young (second President of the church) 

Amongst many others, including me.  There are literally millions of us.  I got goosebumps. I now have a really good reason to celebrate Thanksgiving in November!

A thought to carry with you  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~\。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ | 田田 |門 ★

 *
I learned wisdom from
the things I suffered.
~Eliza R Snow  •。★★ 。* 。 


Baked Peach French Toast

 In the kitchen today  . . .  Baked Peach French Toast.  I served it with sausages and bacon curls.  It was delicious! 

Have a wonderful Sunday. No matter what you get up to, don't forget!


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And I do too! 





18 comments:

  1. Hi Marie, I've said it before and I'll say it again...YOU SHOULD WRITE A NOVEL...you're writing is beautiful!!

    Wow, what a family you have, that's amazing! Bet you're glad you don't have to send them all Christmas cards though!!

    Happy Sunday, lot's of love xxx

    P.S. Jen's mouth is better now after the antibiotics, thanks for your prayers xxx

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    1. Aww thanks Kate! I guess I am a poet at heart! I sure am glad that I don't have to send them all Christmas Cards! Happy that Jen's mouth is better and all can go ahead without any worries! Yay! Love and hugs, xoxo

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  2. Enjoy the first Sunday of the month. I have forgotten what you call it.

    Spring has sprung. Today was 29. The birds are singing all day.

    Today I bought another 2kg of strawberries to make into jam. I spent $4 for t hose berries. Very cheap indeed. The jars cost more.

    God bless.

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    1. Fast and Testimony Sunday Suzan. That is a real bargain on the berries Suzan! Very cheap!! Enjoy! xoxo

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  3. What Kate said..as I read of your thoughts on September..I thought..again..how well you write!
    Yikes..such prose marie..Kudos!

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    1. Thanks so much Monique! You make me smile. Xoxo

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  4. Happy September! That french toast looks wonderful. Still very hot here but the days do have a different feel. I'm sitting here looking at some leaves falling from a neighbors tree. Fall is on the way !

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    1. That French Toast is really wonderful Pam, for sure! Happy Labour Day! Xoxo

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  5. It IS exciting to learn that one's ancestors were on the Mayflower, isn't it? Heh, one of my lines come from John Alden and Pricilla Mullen...funny, they too have MANY descendants. My Grandpa knew we came from the Mayflower but nothing else...then we visited in Alabama and right on the tombstones of some kin was yet more information (their full mother and dad's names...VERY helpful)...along with what was on Ancestry. FUN!!
    Elizabeth

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    1. What’s even cooler Elizabeth is knowing we BOTH had ancestors on the same ship! And here we are!! Xoxo

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    2. How amazing it is...and such a small world really!!
      XOXO Elizabeth

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    3. And getting smaller I find! xoxo

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  6. Wow, what a stellar ancestral lineage! I don't imagine there are enough hours and days ahead for me to research that far back, having only begun in 2015; but I'm plugging away each and every day, and rejoicing in discoveries all the same.

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    1. Oftimes you reach a point Sharon where it is like dominoes falling and someone has already done a lot, you strike that and it just zooms ahead! Good luck and keep enjoying! xoxo

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  7. Sharing ancestors is amazing.

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  8. I loved all your thoughts on September and the fall season. It is a precous time for me because there is a certain blessed feeling the surrounds me at the change of this season. You write so beautifully. I think you should publish a book of writings.
    I am so excited by your ancestor find. You have a remarkable ancestory.
    I am connected on the Mayflower too. I love family history for many reasons.
    Blessings and hugs!

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    1. What a fabulous thought to realise that both of us had ancestors on the Mayflower! Another lovely connection LeAnn! Love you! xoxo

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