We are supposed to get our first snow of the season tonight and tomorrow morning with accumulations of an inch or more in the higher elevations, which is where I am. The first snow always evokes a lot of conflicting feelings in me. I have to face up to the fact that I am not going to get all those fall chores done. The gardening season is over and there is no more opportunity to catch up, finish up, cross it off the list. On the other hand, I can let go of all the oughts and musts, and look forward to deep garden dreaming for the next several months. There’s never a garden so perfect as the one that’s in your head, the one you will have–someday. Now I tackle all the indoor oughts and musts, all the neglected household chores that were laid aside to garden. I live a lopsided life.
Now, the digging and dividing of perennials, the general autumn cleanup and the planting of spring bulbs are all an act of faith. One carries on before the altar of delayed gratification, until the ground freezes and you can’t do any more other than refill the bird feeder and gaze through the window, waiting for the snow. . . . Meanwhile, it helps to think of yourself as a pear tree or a tulip. You will blossom spectacularly in the spring, but only after the required period of chilling.
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