220605 return to the vineyard

 June 5

The old witch, a hawthorn, is in bloom, looking more than ever like a jaunty, woman's hat.

Confetti from a hawthorn wedding by the ridge stream:

We drove home from Toronto without any arrival time in mind. We even left "late" at 11:30 am.  But, as we did on the way there, we aimed to take as long as we could to do the trip. This simple change in perspective stripped away all the stress of the drive, all concern for making "good time", all the fret of traffic hold-ups. We did have a "good time": we played a driving game, listened to comedian, Eddie Izzard, some music. We talked. We stopped at ONRoutes, and enjoyed the picnic sites, which are spacious and woodsy. Always look for them at ONRoutes; their entrance can be hidden, but they are open from Victoria Day to sometime in early fall. (I like the ONRoutes pun, so fun and funny.) In spite of our laid-back, holiday-slow pace, the drive took only nine hours and was so pleasant, a holiday indeed! 

Arriving at the vineyard was magical. Butterflies in my stomach as we turned onto our road, pulling onto the apron, letting Rocky out of car and collar. Then the cool dim cottage, that particular smell that I have known forever, of a quiet, clean house that has been empty and waiting. We were all very happy to be here. Beans and toast, an easy and comforting meal to close the day.

*****

The cows have gone again, to greener pastures. (First time I have ever used that phrase literally.) Rock and I were out first thing next morning for a walk. Here is Rocky coming back for a Mumma-check (and a treat). 

These large and beautiful fungi have (I am pretty certain.) sprouted and grown since we were last on the path! They are edible, but I don't feel compelled to try them. I am too much of a newbie to trust, even though my mushroom guru, my nephew, has said that they are safe. He also warned that I should try only a little the first time I eat them, because, he said, "You don't know how your stomach will react." There may be a wildness to wild mushrooms that is unlike the domestic grocery store varieties, stronger, more exotic trace nutrients, perhaps, that is more foreign to our system. 

The first jack in the pulpit of the season - I have only seen them by a roadside. Last year I saw three or four, but they blend in with the other undergrowth, so are perhaps harder to spot in the woods.

These worm-things have a rooted end and a blind-worm growing end that seems to want to return to the earth. Picture this (trademark app) says they are nasturtiums, but how it knows that I am not sure. I will wait and see what they become.

Starflower, so pretty, but only a few in these woods.

Here is how the naked forest has clothed itself. It would be difficult, and harmful to so many plants if I were to attempt to infiltrate the forest now.

The trickster, grey beech in new leaf.

Wildlife: A slug and a toad. I saw a small snake, seven or eight inches, but only his disappearing form, by my feet, as he slipped under the leaves.

At sunset, a dragon above the ridge.

The sacred and the secular cross paths throughout the day. It is hard sometimes to understand that they co-exist and are therefore, both of them, real and actual (if that isn't redundant), each another aspect of the world, that encompasses science, art, philosophy and the raw experiences of the senses.

Keep well and be kind when you can.

Mumma Yaga