Dry Weather

The heat and dry weather continue; the corn crop withers; the pastures turn brown, and my lawn at the farm looks like an Arizona desert.  It’s a bit unnerving walking across grass that crunches under foot; it is like walking on crackers.

My prairie suffers, so do my trees.  Early goldenrods are showing now and then as they push forth a meager little reminder of what they would look like had the rains come more often.  The Black Eyed Susans are in bloom, but only an occasional one—not like a normal summer.

The big blue stem grass, with a root system that goes deep, remains green, but not luxuriant as in other years.  Mostly the prairie plants are dormant, waiting patiently for rain, hunkered down under the torrid sun that sends temperatures above one-hundred degrees for several days in a row.

The big woodlot beyond my cabin remains silent in the heat.  No birds flitting among the trees, no squirrels scampering along the trail.  They are all there, waiting, waiting for the rains to come.  Showing themselves in the early morning, and at sundown, when the temperatures moderate—but resting during the heat of the day.

              

THE OLD TIMER SAYS:  It’s so dry that the Pine River only runs on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

CHECK THIS OUT:  My one day workshop: “Writing From Your Life,” October 13, 9-4. The Clearing, Door County. For more information go to. http://theclearing.org/current/index.shtml

UPCOMING EVENTS:

August 5-11, The Clearing.  Writing Workshop: Writing From Your Life.