The Shadows Lengthen - October

It feels like it happened so suddenly.  One day, were weren't seeing too much for shadows in the middle of the morning.  The next, there they were there - with a decided slant to the North.  When did this happen?  And how did it sneak up on us?

The sun is no less bright.  In fact, just like March, there is often a brilliantly blue sky that makes you want to stop, look - and breathe for a while.  But, those shadows are troubling.  They are harbingers of days that have too few hours of daylight and too many hours of the full dark.

On the other hand, shadows provide us with contrast.  Textures we miss when the sun is high overhead and the heat radiates from every surface are suddenly more visible.  Light and dark play against, and with, each other.

As always, there is plenty to do on the farm.  But, there is a difference in the tasks we perform this month.  A harvest often results in that particular bed being prepped for the cold months.  There isn't so much of the repeating harvest crops.  The number of poultry flocks steadily decline on the farm and the equipment is cleaned and put away - until next year.

This past October, I found myself enjoying my time on the farm more than I had in a while.  We weren't as absorbed with the extension of the season for vegetable production as we had been in past years.  I noticed that I had a little more room to breathe - and live.  We still didn't "get it all done" and we still had our moments.  But, there were more times where I could stop, be awed by the world around me, and observe the play of shadow with light.