I've got to admit-- I'm enjoying the overcast days, birdsong at 7 a.m., the dew, the chill. A light jacket Even though it's June, it doesn't feel fully like "summer break," (I'm of the mindset that anything above 75 degrees is summer) even though we're conditioned to believe summer starts when school lets out. The cyclical nature of the seasons follows a different timeline. I'm only reminded of this when the Summer Solstice comes around.
June 21st was Midsummer, the longest day of the year, when the Sun is at it's highest point in the sky, the Tropic of Cancer. This marks the official start of summer, and the minutely dwindling hours of daylight until we reach the winter solstice, Yule, and the shortest day of the year.
The cycle continues as it has since before history began. Here, we clip the spinach to its roots, declaring the crop done. We'll plant more lettuce in this bed. We spread a compost of animal waste and weeds, a darkly rich earth filled with worms. We spread alfalfa pellets, the same ones we give the cows for a snack. We toss the discarded spinach over the fence for the baby ducks and the chickens. The sun rises and sets, and we're just here, tending as best we can.