Happy Saturday, dancers! It’s the weekend and it’s summer, which means I’ll be mowing the lawns again tomorrow before it rains again next week (a never-ending cycle until winter comes back). I love living out in the country, away from the noise and crowds of the urban environment, but damn, country living is a lot of work. Especially when you have 60 acres and a 120-year old house to take care of. Thankfully, I do NOT have to mow 60 acres!
The house is slowly getting the TLC she so deserves. She now has a brand new roof and roof trim. She has furniture in all of her rooms (and many, many boxes). Next will be a new heating system as the old oil furnace is not expected to make it through another winter. Add in some basement insulation, a new pressure tank, driveway repairs, and some drainage work, and that just about completes phase 1 and pushes my return to ballroom back another year.
It’s hard to be sad when every day ends with a gorgeous sunset and every morning is greeted by songbirds chirping. I’ve been here almost 11 months and I still get distracted by the natural beauty surrounding me.
The residents of our land make more frequent appearances in the summer too. The deer and wild turkeys never really stopped coming around. We inherited a groundhog who finally woke up from its winter nap and frequents the garden beds planted by the previous owners. A chorus of frogs and peepers sings every evening. In addition to the songbirds, we have several species of owls and hawks that hunt the fields that aren’t mowed, not to mention bald eagles and turkey vultures that pass through. I haven’t seen the porcupine that visited last summer yet.
The less welcome visitors are back too, like the ticks and wasps. Ticks are really bad in this area, unfortunately. One of my fur babies was very sick for several weeks, probably due to a bacterial infection from a tick bite. He’s still recovering. It’s a little frustrating because our woods are so magical and inviting! But without some kind of tick spray, you’re guaranteed to bring back a LOT of tiny passengers after any stroll through the trees. Even with chemical protection, you have to be careful. That was one nice thing about the dead of winter – my boys and I could go walking in the woods as long as we wanted and not worry about ticks!
The dance journey will continue with my weekly ballet and Zumba classes. Honestly, with everything to be done at home, I think I’d be hard pressed to find the energy to seriously train for a ballroom competition anyway. Still, I miss having an upcoming performance to prepare for. It always provided that extra motivation to push through the difficult days. Instead of the excitement of an upcoming event, now I have the peace of hearing wind through the trees to get me through the difficult days. I think that peace is much more needed for my soul this season than the excitement.
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The Girl with the Tree Tattoo 