My raised beds have been tucked in for the winter, thanks to Jim. He also burned out the gasoline in the mowers, weed whacker, and chain saw. The only thing left to do until bedding down for the cold winter is harvesting the kiwi. That, I usually do after a frost. We were threatened with a frost last night but it did not materialize. Once that has been done I can put my mind at rest.
We had a bountiful harvest of muscadine grapes this year and many happy wine makers are no doubt keeping an eye on their brew to see when it will be ready for bottling. The first year my husband made wine from them was my first encounter with the art of making a tasty wine. He used Higgins variety and entered his wine in the Annual Amateur Wine Makers Competition in Atlanta. He won first place in native grapes and was so proud he couldn't stop grinning. What I remember about that adventure was the many containers of bubbling grape juice as it fermented, and the odor permeating our home.
One other type of harvesting activity here is the season for bow hunting for deer. One gentleman comes each year when his work allows it. He has made two trips already. One of them made him a very happy man. He bagged an eight point buck. The first time he had a deer he told me about it later and said he wanted to show it to me but decided not to. I told him I was happy for him but glad he did not show me as I might not want him to hunt here again. I think it is a good practice to keep the many deer here in balance but cannot bear to actually see one taken down.
Since today is the last day in October, we will be on Daylight Saving Time next week. Also little children, and my grandson, too, will be out all dressed up and knocking on neighborhood doors singing out "Trick or Treat". No one comes to my door as I am too far away from young families with children. The last children who came here are now out of college and in the work force. Halloween has never been one of my favorite times, but little children do have a lot of fun with it. When I was teaching first graders we always had a parade through the classrooms so everyone could have the thrill of seeing other little goblins and be seen! I participated by bringing a huge pumpkin to school. Every morning and every afternoon someone had the privilege of drawing a face on the pumpkin, using a special pen which could be washed off. I took photographs of each Jack-O-Lantern and put them into a book. I turned it into a reading book with a sentence under each picture. This went into our classroom library.
We all have memories of special holidays and Halloween is one of the fun times for children and a few adults. Many years ago when I was in my teens we had parties at our church. I recall how someone played a trick on me which was not safe at all. My neighbor pulled a chair out from under me and I sat down hard on a concrete floor. Boys still like to play tricks on their friends but hopefully not that kind of trick. There were some older and rowdier boys who went around doing damage. If you really lived out in the country and had an out house, you had to guard it or some roustabouts would slip in under cover of dark and push it over. A favorite trick, rather a nuisance, but safer, was taking a bar of soap and marking up the windows of the businesses in town. It was easier for adults to hold parties for youngsters then to deal with some of the tricks which creative youngsters could initiate.
Whatever happens in your neighborhood, I hope it is a fun time, so happy memories can be filed away in the minds of little children, and this Autumn will be a happy one for all.
