Saving for a rainy day…

We’ve got this incredible view from my window, and a huge box of golden delicious apples…

This season has a strange effect on me. It is my favorite time of year–by far, but there’s this ferocious maternal thing that happens. It presents itself in the form of an overwhelming need to freeze, can or dry whatever will stay still long enough to get it safely into a bag or jar and squeeze it shut. The cats are looking at me funny. Even though I have baby hats to make, mending to do, files to sort, and rooms to clean, those things will have to wait a bit, until I get past this need to squirrel away all the nuts and berries for winter.

I remember hearing a wise man once say, “leave no jar unfilled.” Even though at the time, I was surrounded by plenty, the impact of his advice has stayed with me. Perhaps he knew that a lot of moms get great comfort from the rainbow of bottles lining her shelves. It’s hard to describe the feeling of seeing the counter filled, with rows and rows of grape juice, jam, peaches, spaghetti sauce, jelly and applesauce. Or bags of dried pears, plums and tomatoes packed in a plastic tub. It’s kinda like sitting in a rocker in front of the fire with a cup of steaming hot cocoa, knowing the kids are all tucked away in their beds. It’s that kind of feeling…

“…all is safely gathered in…” for that rainy day, that may come tomorrow, or maybe next week.