There is a feeling right now of ‘between’. The time between Winter and Summer, or Vetr and Sumar as the Old Norse language goes, were times of fairly hard contrasts. For Norway and Iceland, the regions where the home cultures for much of my Heathen religions comes from, these northern Europe regions have had pretty stark contrasts between the two seasons. Michigan’s Spring and Fall, on the other hand, brings forward a kind of liminal time in each quarter of the year. Things start and stop, move back and forth between extreme states. There’s sometimes a false start to Spring or a deceptive Winter chill that rips through you in the Fall. Snowfall or ice storms hit as the calendar ticks down to the next season, almost seeming to mock our plans or ideas of what should be.
Crossing Hedgerows exists in interesting ways between here. When winds get too high the forest is too dangerous to trek in; too many widowmakers in the trees just waiting to hit the right gust or ice-formation. When the snow melts and the rain hits, the waters of the creek rise high enough to kiss the bridge. The Earth all around struggles to make a show of green.
Then, suddenly, Sunna’s light bathes everything and green is all around. The canopy of the trees brings a kind of green brown glow to all beneath it. The chickens are far more animated, rather than huddling together or wandering near to the coop. There is a feeling of ‘ready’ on the wind, that everything outside is waking up.
It is not fair to say the whole Farm has been asleep, by any means. The hoophouse was full of green and growth throughout the Winter. Mounds of Earth, chicken manure and straw that transormed over time into soil, grow perennials throughout the year. The remains of last year’s hops and tomatoes are brown and dead, falling to the ground and becoming part of the dirt of the hoophouse. Soon, the whole hoophouse will be full of plants bursting forth again. As things warm up and wind up, I am grateful for these cooler, contemplative in-between, these liminal times where the ramping up to full on Summer is beginning.