Pictures of Harvest

There is something exciting about the neighbor stopping by and telling you he is ready to start combining your field. This past week that is exactly what happened and he took out one of the fields of corn. My husband hauled loads to town while the combine kept filling the empty wagons.

Something about bringing in a harvest is so satisfying. It is like the fulfillment of a promise that was given in the Spring when those kernels of corn were planted in the ground. You watch those fields all summer. You pray for rain and sometimes you pray for dry weather in years like this past growing season.

I was going to say why I like this season…but then I realized I like pretty much all the seasons. Life is such a reflection of those seasons. Everything from raising children to taking care of elderly parents is a season of life. There is something good about each one of those seasons and there are challenges to each of those seasons.

I love the beauty of the painting that is fall. The golds, the russets, the reds make a beautiful picture that fills the senses and satisfies the soul.

I love the smell of the leaves laying on the ground, the sound of dryers running in the night drying the corn that has just been harvested from the field. I love the vee of the geese as they fly overhead to their winter homes and the taste of hot chocolate on a cool fall evening.

I love the fact that the promise of Spring has been fulfilled by the harvest of fall. It is a reassurance that God is faithful and the promises are real.

May you be blessed in all the seasons of your life. May you be shown the good in each season and see the blessing in the challenges.

“What are you planting today to harvest tomorrow?”
― Lailah Gifty Akita

While the earth remaineth,
seedtime and harvest,
and cold and heat,
and summer and winter,
and day and night shall not cease.
Genesis 8:22

 

Shades of Harvest

The seasons are definitely changing in our area.  All the lush green fields have turned to shades of browns.  They even sound different.  The leaves on the corn stalks rustle dryly with the slightest breeze. And there is a smell in the air that only comes from damp leaves slowly disintegrating into the soil.

Where fields were once alive and growing they are now dead-looking, dry and ready to be harvested. The soybeans have mostly been combined and farmers have now moved on to the corn fields.

As I stood on my porch I could hear the sounds of harvest going on around me. The sound of tractors, wagons and combines rolling through those fields of Iowa corn, harvesting millions of beautiful, golden kernels. It is the sound of compensation for the worry, sweat and prayers that have gone into that crop since the day the seeds were put in the ground.

I did not get a picture of a wagon full of corn as my husband brought them back empty after unloading them at the local grain elevator. Perhaps tomorrow I can get that accomplished.

The roads to town are filled with these same tractors and wagons making their way to the local grain elevators. Our radio stations even warn us to all be more alert as we travel during this time of year as the farmers move at a slower pace than the rest of the traffic.

There is a beauty to this season that is fall.  The beauty lies in the quiet evenings that echo with the distant hum of grain dryers and farmers staying late in the fields.  There is a beauty in the many shades of brown and the leaves that are turning yellow and beginning to fall and carpet the ground. There is beauty in the smell that comes up from the earth as it is once again uncovered after a field is combined.

So many things about fall are a feast for the senses. The colors that draw your eyes to the edge of the river, the red blaze of a sugar maple, the rustle of dry grass and withered corn leaves, the lonesome sound of geese as they fly south for the winter, the feel of moist dirt that falls off a newly dug potato, the chill of the evening air, the frost sparkling on the grass in the morning,  and the smell of wood smoke coming from the chimney.

There is such a timeless feel to the changing of the seasons. Perhaps because it is timeless. There is a comfort in the continuity of this cycle of life. There is a comfort in knowing that it has been this way since the beginning of time and it will continue till the end of time.

It is a blessing to live in a place where the seasons are so ingrained in the rhythm of our lives. It takes a certain faith to put those seeds in the ground in the spring and wait for the harvest. There is a blessing in being dependent and it has given me a deep appreciation for what the Creator has gifted us.

May you see the blessing this weekend.

 

²² “As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.”
Genesis 8:22
New International Version (NIV)

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/millions/

 

 

 

 

Warm Comfort for Cold Weather

Tonight and the next couple days promise to give us a little advance taste of the coming cold of winter.  The weather man keeps telling us that a wide spread killing freeze is coming to our area tonight…..I believe him!

We are in that awkward phase in the Midwest between hot muggy summer days and cold freezing winter days. Some of our days are absolutely beautiful and warm; they are dry, sunny and golden . Tomorrow, according to the weather man, does not promise to be one of those days.

This afternoon we spent some time digging out the sweet potatoes as I have heard they cannot be left in the ground when there is a killing freeze. I have never grown sweet potatoes but thought I would give them a try this year. I only planted a couple of plants and was curious to know how they did.  There were not a lot of them but it will be fun to try to make sweet potato fries……when I find a recipe.

There are also many hills of regular white potatoes that are needing to be dug out.  Fortunately those are not quite as fussy as sweet potatoes and can stay in the ground a little while longer. The pie pumpkins need to be picked and put somewhere to be stored until I have some time to cook them out, puree, and freeze to be used for pies, muffins, bars and breads later in the year. The harvest season is always busy with a variety of things to do.

I am grateful for the time between soybean harvest and combining field corn.  That is when my husband has time to do the digging up of produce. It always seems to be a race with the weather at that point. Usually the weather pattern is unsettled and it can range from beautiful to rainy and sometimes even flurries of snow.

With the cold weather coming I was in the mood to make soup. This morning I decided to make Cream of Cauliflower Soup. (I also add Broccoli if I have it.)  I got this recipe many years ago from a friend named Ethel.  We always joke that pretty much any recipe that has Ethel’s name on it is going to be good…..and they always are!  (She might be the local  version of Betty Crocker!)

Anyway, here is the recipe for the soup:

Creamy Cauliflower Soup
1 large potato (peeled and diced)
1/2 cup celery (chopped)
1/2 cup carrots
1 head cauliflower
Cut all vegetables and cook 15 minutes till slightly tender.
Put in crock pot.
Add:
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
2 soup cans milk
1/2 pound cheese
Cook about 4-6 hours in crock pot.
NOTE: I do like to use a bag of California Mix frozen vegetable in place of the head of cauliflower.
you can also use broccoli instead of cauliflower.
For the cheese I use Velveeta as I like the smooth texture it gives.

This makes a large batch and is wonderfully smooth and creamy.  I have a feeling it is not a diet soup but I like to console myself that during the busy seasons a person needs a hearty soup.

May you also enjoy the warm comfort of a bowl of soup on a cool fall day.

I think that women just have a primeval instinct to make soup,
which they will try to foist on anybody who looks like a likely candidate.
Dylan Moran
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/soup.html