CONTRARY TO MANY....

I hear people lamenting the departure of summer, and I remember how my brother and I looked forward to autumn and the winter. In spite of warm weather, swimming, biking and games of ball, spring and summer meant extra chores to be done. Besides the milking and regular feeding of the animals there was maple sap to be gathered and boiled into syrup, fields of vegetables (and I do mean fields) to be planted, hay to be brought in, pails and pails of berries and chokecherries to be picked, then hours of preparing bushels of the produce for canning.

When autumn arrived there was mostly just the orchard to clean, and school would begin. We both enjoyed school, probably more for the social life and access to the school library than the learning itself. We loved to read.

Autumn ushered in crisp breezes to encourage our burrowing under heavy blankets. Autumn meant Halloween – YUM! Our foster parents were not financially affluent by any means, and the chance to walk miles during the spookiest night of the year and fill a large bag with candy was a terrific event! Thanksgiving was also celebrated by a table laden with goodies; turkey, pumpkin and squash pies, homemade popcorn balls and every kind of cookie one could want. Visitors would be in and out, usually bringing other children to play.

Winter offered us skating, hockey and sliding, where we could spend more time playing than working outside because the fields were under snow, so no planting!! And there was Christmas, more goodies and excitement, the gifts a desirable extra...and last but not least, that holiday would bring our mom, who showed up to spend a couple of weeks vacation with us. With her we would visit relatives, cousins our age we would see only once a year, and our maternal grandparents where our half sister lived. We hated when it ended.

I do recall that our adolescence helped us appreciate summer more. By this time we were off the farm and living in town, so the last day of school was celebrated with appropriate joy. We had summer jobs, but that was nothing compared to the toil in the fields. There was tanning and beaches and crushes...oh yes, summer was much better then. I can honestly say my love for summer lasted until I had the children, and the first day of school once again reminded me how much I preferred autumn. The onset of menopause strengthened the preference; summer heat begone!!

I listen to the moaning every year on or around this date, and I nod in sympathy, but inside you will find me SMILING! Betcha I’m not the only one!!

Luv from the Bush in Quebec.