Remembering Mother’s Day         

Mother’s Day, 2^nd Sunday in May, brings back many memories for this aging farm boy.  Back in the later years of the Great Depression, my twin brothers and I had no money for fancy cards or any kind of Mother’s Day Present.  I ‘d obviously heard that Mother’s Day was coming, because we’d made homemade cards at our country school.

I think it was Pa who suggested that we might pick some violets for our mother for Mother’s Day.  On the far north edge of the woodlot, back of the house, was an open hilltop, where beautiful violets grew.  I was but a little shaver, and my brothers were smaller still, but we found our way to the edge of the big woods and picked a nice big bouquet of violets.

When we arrived home, and stumbled into the kitchen with our special present, Ma was more than a little surprised.  I noticed she had tears in  her eyes and I wondered why she was crying as she found a little jar, filled it water and  put our violets  in it.   Together we said, “Happy Mother’s Day.”

            “Thank you, thank you,” she said. “What a wonderful Mother’s Day present.”

President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Mother’s Day a national holiday on May 9, 1914, and that it  should be celebrated the second Sunday of May each year.  But Mother’s Day goes back a long way before 1914. After the Civil War, a group of mothers began working to organize a Mother’s Friendship Day, as a way to bring the Union and the Confederacy once more together. Other groups of mothers in the late 1800s saw Mother’s Day as a way to organize and promote world peace.

Today, Mother’s Day is celebrated in some 50 countries of the world.  I read somewhere that more Mother’s Day cards are purchased than for any celebration.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Call your mother and wish her the best on her special day. You might give her some flowers as well.

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

You can buy my books at your local bookstore. order online from bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org

If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit Dregne’s.  and look at their great selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.  If you live in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone 715-845-9648).  They have a large selection of my books. 

 

 

 

Grow Your Own Grape Vine

 

Spring has been so, so slow in coming this year, with winter sticking around for a brief look nearly every week of this April, which is supposed to be a spring month.

One thing I remembered every spring for the 50 years I’ve had it, is to prune my Concord Grape vine that snakes around the split rail fence in front of my house.  The main vine is about the size of my wrist, and had I not severely pruned it every year, I have no idea how long the vines—there are several off shoots from the mother vine—would be.

Early on, someone showed me how to prune grapes.  To the passerby, once I’ve finished pruning, it appears that I have killed the vine.  Not so.  Severe pruning wakes it up and causes it send forth new growth, more each year with a new crop of grapes.

I’ve taught my son-in-law, Paul, how to do the pruning, which he did for me this year.  As he was pruning, he said “I’ve heard that it’s possible to grow a new vine from these cuttings.”

            “Yup, I’ve heard that too,” I said.  “Want to try it?”  Here is how he described what he did:

“Several of the new growth vines that I removed from your grapevine, I cut the vine so there were at least several growth nodes on each piece.   I bundled the cut vines together and placed then in an old plastic milk jug filled with peat moss. After watering. I placed them in the shade. I expect to see roots and buds in four weeks”

I did some further reading and learned that starting grape vines from cuttings requires patience.  It may take three years before the new vine will produce grapes. Concord grapes make just the best grape jelly.  What’s three years to wait for such a treat?

The Old Timer Says: Want to try something new?  How about starting a grape vine from a cutting?

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

You can buy my books at your local bookstore. order online from bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org

If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit Dregne’s.  and look at their great selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.  If you live in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone 715-845-9648).  They have a large selection of my books. 

 

 

Remembering Arbor Day

 

April is the month for Arbor Day.  What I remember about Arbor Day was how special the day was at the Chain O’ Lake one-room country school that I attended for eight years.  Arbor Day, originally devoted to tree planting, meant outdoor clean up day at our school.  On a day in late April, we raked the lawn, picked up the downed tree branches and generally cleaned up the about an acre of land that was our schoolyard.

When the raking was finished, with our teacher, we walked the half mile or so to the lake after which our school was named.  We walked all the way around the lake, looking for frogs, wild ducks, maybe a Canada goose, but mostly enjoying walking by the lake with all of its special smells and sights.  It was a memorable introduction to spring.

When we got back to the school, the teacher started a bonfire with the dead leaves we had raked, and we roasted marshmallows.  What a wonderful afternoon it was.

Arbor Day has an interesting history, tracing back to Nebraska in 1872.  At the time there were few trees in Nebraska and settlers arriving from the East and Midwest longed for trees. A newspaper editor, J. Sterling Morton was a advocate for tree planting.  He became secretary for the Nebraska Territory and proposed a tree planting day he called Arbor Day for April 10, 1874.  Arbor day, tree planting, became a prominent tradition for schools.

Today, Arbor Day is celebrated in all 50 states—the actual date depending on the best tree planting weather.  The last Friday in April became the common date.  Nebraska City, Nebraska is the official birthplace of Arbor Day.

We didn’t plant any trees at our school on Arbor Day, but we were reminded of the importance of the day with our special celebration.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Remember Arbor Day. Plant a tree.

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

You can buy my books at your local bookstore. order online from bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org

If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit Dregne’s.  and look at their great selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.  If you live in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone 715-845-9648).  They have a large selection of my books. 

 

Crocus--Showing Us The Way to Spring Natasha Kassulke photo

 

Crocus—Showing us the Way to Spring    Natasha Kassulke photo.

Some rain.   A little snow that covers the ground, but not enough to shovel.  A hint of sunshine and lots of thick, gray clouds.  A warm breeze, not often.  A cold wind from the north, too often.  This is spring in the north. Spring in Wisconsin. I suffer through April, not knowing what will come next, not knowing how I should prepare, if prepare at all.  I remember it similar to the many Aprils I have experienced over the years.

And then I see it, peaking through the drab brown of last fall’s leaves.  A flash of yellow—but only when the sun is shining for it apparently, like the rest of us, doesn’t care much for gloomy and dark.  I’m talking about those little yellow flowers, one of the first flowers to come out in spring.  A beautiful yellow crocus.  A brave little flower with quite a story—I looked it up.

Crocus flowers can be found in southern Europe, central China, the Middle East and Africa. There are 80 different species of crocus and they all belong to the iris family.  They will grow in forests, open areas, and in my front yard. 

And they are old.  Very old. The history of crocus flowers dates back thousands of years. Some of the earliest references to the crocus flower come from Bronze Age Greece, about 3,500 years ago as well as ancient Egypt.

For many people the crocus flower symbolizes rebirth, innocence, joy, and new-beginnings.  For me it means that yes, spring has not forgotten us living in the north.  It is on its way, led by a little yellow flower that is not afraid to peek out from beneath its blanket of leaves. Willing to appear before the tulips and daffodils.  Let’s give a round of applause to the crocus.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: The little, yellow crocus flower is a reminder that yes, spring is on its way.

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

You can buy my books at your local bookstore. order online from bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org

If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit Dregne’s.  and look at their great selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.  If you live in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone 715-845-9648).  They have a large selection of my books. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Searching for Spring Steve Apps Photo

 

When I was in grade school, we all learned this little ditty: “March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.”  And most of the time the ditty proved true.  But guess what, I am writing this on the last day of March and it is snowing.  Snowing hard.  Accumulating on the tree branches and grassy areas, making travel difficult.  A real bummer for those who are patiently waiting for spring.

I am one of those who is waiting. I so much enjoy standing in one of my woodlots at Roshara this time of the year and merely looking, listening, smelling—feeling for the changing of the seasons.

Here is a little something I wrote in my journal:

            Spring is a fickle season in the North.  It’s not sure if it should appear, or perhaps it’s cautious and afraid after being gone for so many months.  It peeks around the corner a bit, some days even comes out into the yard to play.  But then, like a shy child, it retreats into the shadows and winter returns yet one more time.  Spring in the South is more forward, more self-confident.  It shows its face in late February or March and stays—mostly.

Spring is my second most liked month of the seasons in the North.  Autumn comes first.  For me spring is a season of promise, of expectation, of hope.  My dad, always the optimist, often said when I had a bad day, “Tomorrow will be better.”  After a long, cold and snowy winter on the farm, his words “Everything will be better when spring rolls around.”

Spring often came in fits and starts—a warm day or two, then snow and cold, followed by another warm day. When I complained to my dad that spring seemed to never come.  His words, “It always comes.”  And he was right.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS:  Waiting for spring sometimes requires considerable patience.

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

You can buy my books at your local bookstore. order online from bookshop.org, or purchase from the Friends of the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose—a fundraiser for them. Phone: 920-622-3835 for prices and ordering, or contact the librarian: barnard@wildroselibrary.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
Wild Rose, WI 54984.
www.wildroselibrary.org

If you live in the western part of the state, stop at Ruth’s home town, Westby, visit Dregne’s.  and look at their great selection of my books. Order a book from them by calling 1-877-634-4414. They will be happy to help you.  If you live in northcentral Wisconsin, stop at the Janke bookstore in Wausau (phone 715-845-9648).  They have a large selection of my books.