Fall Full Blood Moon
The hunt takes on a seriousness in the fall, especially in the temperate climates like Minnesota. Even if summer game had kept the family or clan fed then, fall has to do double, even triple duty. It has to feed the family through the fall itself and sustain the family through the leaner winter season. It also has to last into spring, when the animals begin to fatten up again. Yes, this was in the time of the hunter/gatherers, but their rhythms are ours and in honor of them, consciously or not, thousands go into the woods in blaze orange. This is a ritual as much as it is an activity, a time when we honor the traditions of our ancestors long dead.
The wild hunt has a particular place in my own developing ge-ology and it relates directly to the hunt as we still know it. The wild hunt rides the skies at all times of the year though you may hear them more in the fall. The wild hunt harvests souls, taking them from bodies as they ride. It is said that if you hear the wild hunt that your time is near. So listen with care to the storms of late fall if you dare.
Squash vines, tomato vines, left over bean plants, wilted potato plants all went into the compost pile this morning. Now is the time to think about the spring garden, prepare the beds for a new gardening year as this one comes to a close.
In short summary this was a better year than I thought. We have many potatoes, squash, carrots and a few garlic to last over the winter months. We’ve eaten many meals already from the garden. Kate has conserved tomatoes, grapes, green beans, turnips and greens. There are still pole beans to harvest. Even though it was a good year, it is still not where I want it. Next year.