Harvest season

I am loving this season of harvest. Living most of my life in the suburbs, I never really lived my eating life in tune with the seasons. Whatever I wanted to eat was always available in the grocery store. Over the last 7 years, I have realized the importance (and health!) of trying to live in the rhythm with, not in opposition to, nature's cycles of seasons, day and night, etc. This became especially clear to me on a 6 week backpacking course Matt and I participated in in college. You sleep when its dark and wake when its light. You eat because you are hungry and rest because your body demands it. It seems like such a simple concept but in our modern life filled with conveniences and 24-hour drive thrus it can be a profound worldview.

Anyway, this year God's rhythms are calling me to harvest. Living in a rural area where they are many farms is giving lots of opportunities and reminders to harvest now and store away for later. I love the idea of taking fruit and vegetables when they are locally in season, fresh, at the peak of ripening and freezing or canning them to enjoy in the winter. There is nothing better than eating fresh tasting sweet (and I mean summer sweet not freeze-section sweet) corn. Especially on the mountain where we have the potential to get snowed in several times in the winter.

Today I froze 3 dozen ears of corn. Not nearly enough, need about 5 dozen more. And 7 quarts of summer squash, I will probably do about 7 more. All locally grown and oh so tasty. Matt's parents (the canning and freezing gurus in my life), the kids and I will pick blueberries on Thursday to freeze as well. We do have 4 blueberry bushes in our backyard but since they need some pruning, fertilizing, and TLC, they are only producing enough for our snacking pleasure. But I am LOVING having blueberries right in our back yard. I am dedicated (Matt's says obsessed but I think that is a bit extreme :-) to picking them every day to win the battle over the birds and the bears. (We actually did have a mama bear and 3 cubs in our yard a few weeks ago! It was amazing. I will post some pics some time!)

Anyway, I praise God for this season of harvest that will provide and sustain us in a slower (and colder!) time.