Day 183/365 It’s time to go, three little robins.

      This has nothing to do with what we have accumulated or with our part in letting go of anything. Three weeks ago a pair of robins built a nest in the rhododendron bush next to our house. They came and went bringing sticks and leaves; then they came and went bringing seeds and worms. 

The three chicks grew and grew and then one afternoon they flapped their wings. But hey didn’t fledge, so we went to bed, expecting to view their launch in the morning. Alas, the next day the nest was empty. The young birds had let go all by themselves; they didn’t even say goodbye. 

 

Day 167/365 It’s time to go, spring and summer flowers

This was written by a guest blogger, my husband

It's October, and  flowers that bloomed happily in pots all spring and summer must now go.... either inside, or to flower heaven.

Sadly, the impatience which had a glorious six months of life are annuals.     They are still hanging on, but their days are numbered, inside space is limited, so their fate is to stay outside and face the music. 

Everything else  goes inside...   The lucky geraniums, cacti, and other  perennials,  get to be coddled and nurtured over the long winter, then moved back outside for another wonderful  six months.

This cycle continues, year after year, and just like their owners, the perennials tolerate the short days and cold nights of winter, protected by hot air from baseboard  and electric  heaters, and on some fine days, the sun.

Day 142/365 It's time to go, cherry tree stump

When we moved into our current house a very old cherry tree bloomed regularly each spring in the backyard. But like all things mortal, the tree grew old, grew barren and died.

 The stump lived on, however, and continued to mark the spot where pink flowers once bloomed on its branches.

 Last winter our fence gave up the ghost and was replace

d this spring. During construction of the new fence the old stump had to go. But not entirely. It was sawed into pieces, and the biggest piece, turned upside down, now has place of honor on our patio.

 The faithful old cherry tree,  once bore  beautiful blossoms. Now part of it will bear cheese platters and drinks. And remind us of pink blossoms and long ago springs.

Day 141/365 It's time to go, fence

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     Parts of this fence are over 35 years old. We put it up when we moved in and then over the years hurricanes and just wear and tear have forced us to replace different sections. Since we live on a busy street we really need the protection; every day half the town goes by and turns into the library just across the street.

     Because we had to buy new fencing, this isn’t one of our best getting letting go projects. But my husband plans to cut up the old slats and use them for kindling. We do the best we can to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Day 137/365 It's time to go, sap

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The ancient maple tree in our back yard decided to deliver its sap to us without even being asked. During the night a few pints of sap flowed out of it, gathered on the trunk, and froze there. We couldn't turn down this generous gift from our faithful old friend, and decided to use it as nature intended... for maple syrup.

After a few steps involving chopping, boiling , straining and pouring, our tree provided us with a full mason jar of 100% authentic maple syrup, no additives or sweeteners involved.

The next and only question is:  Do we pour it on our  waffles, or  do we take ten more minutes to add butter, cook it, and turn it into maple sugar?