Slowing Down for October

As a devoted reader of The Sun Magazine, I was delighted to see that the theme of October's issue was "slowing down," which struck me as being particularly appropriate for this particular time of year.

As a matter of fact, the prospect of slowing down was what prompted me to schedule a few days at Coyote Springs Cottage, hidden away in the rolling hills of Northeast Iowa.

So naturally I made sure that The Sun went along with me and since I always turn to the last page first to read over the quotes that fit the theme for the month, several of them jumped out at me right away. Like this one: "...it is only when there is no goal and no rush that the human senses are fully open to receive the world." (Alan Watts)

It's definitely worth stopping the rush that gets in the way of what our sense can reveal to us about Autumn! Things like this......

Coyote Springs Cottage was once a two storey farmhouse that was home to a family of seven. Built in the mid 19th century by an Irish immigrant, it gradually fell into near ruin until it was rescued and beautifully restored by its present owner who rents it at a very reasonable cost to people like me who want to slow down and take advantage of the loveliness of October.

It was good to have a chance to spend several days there being a hermit since I have learned to value what can happen during times of silence and solitude. I think it sharpens the senses and helps us be more alert to what's going on around us....




Spending time in solitude is also a chance to move inside - both literally and figuratively -- in order to ponder and reflect on things we might not otherwise take the time to think about....

Solitude is probably what Fanny Fern had in mind when she said: ""I am convinced that there are times in everybody's experience when there is so much to be done, that the only way to to do it is to sit down and do nothing." That's definitely what I found most rewarding about the time I spent at Coyote Springs Cottage. It was a chance to step aside from what has been keeping me so busy lately in order to do nothing for a while....except pay attention to what I probably would have missed out on otherwise.

feeling sheepish

When my friend Lissa asked us if we wanted to go along to this year’s Sheep and Wool Festival in Jefferson, Wisconsin it sounded like a great idea. Not only was it a beautiful day to be outdoors enjoying the autumn sunshine, but it also gave us a chance to wander around for a few hours, fascinated by shepherds and border collies…

sheep ….

people who raise them ….

and shear them…..

and turn wooly fleeces into gorgeous skeins of brightly colored yarn.

I could have spent the whole day at the border collie field trials watching the shepherds whistling to their dogs or shouting out verbal signals – “come by me…lay down…away by me…that’ll do…”



Meanwhile, the dogs obviously love nothing as much as the thrill of herding sheep. As soon as they’re given the command “go get sheep” off they go at a gallop, tearing madly across the field in a huge arc in order to come up behind their charges and avoid spooking them.



It was fascinating to watch them as they carefully maneuvered the sheep from the far end of the field, through the gates and into the pen. And although technically the shepherds were calling the shots, there was no doubt that the dogs knew exactly what they were supposed to be doing because they’ve been born to look after sheep and it’s been that way for a long, long time. I think that’s one reason I was so captivated by the whole spectacle…..just the realization that human beings, dogs and sheep have been communicating this way for centuries and so far technology hasn’t been able to come up with a better way of doing it.



The same thing is true of what happens when it’s time for sheep shearing. It’s done in pretty much the same way as it’s always been done – except that now there are electric shears to make it easier for both the sheep and the shearer.


I spent over an hour watching David Kier, a professional sheep shearer from California who makes his living traveling all over the country shearing flocks of sheep…a profession that’s probably nearly as old as the other oldest profession on earth! As I watched his demonstration it occurred to me that I was learning more than I’ll ever need to know about sheep shearing techniques and how to handle both the fleece and the sheep that it’s being taken from.



When it was time to leave for home I had already made a mental note about making sure to come back again next year….and perhaps sign up for one of the many classes that are offered on everything from spinning and weaving to how to handle a newly shorn fleece. It’s just another example of how wonderful it is that there is such a wide variety of things to learn in this life and so many ways to be passionate about the things that interest us.

Autumn Vacation

Trish and I just returned from a little vacation. We had been asked to make a presentation to the community at Gethsemani Abbey in Kentucky, and so we decided to make a bit of a holiday of it. After our presentations, we traveled on to "The Land Between the Lakes" and then eventually on to Mountain View in Arkansas. We will probably have several entries here over the next few days.

When we lived in Arkansas 40 years ago, we visited Mountain View, a small community nestled into the hills of the Ozarks. At that time, it was a sleepy little town, but already know as a center for "mountain music." We attended a fiddle contest--an experience that we both remember vividly. By happen-chance our visit this year coincided with the 2009 Statewide Fiddle Contest, and so it was a little like deja vu. However, things have changed a lot in the last 40 years.

Mountain View is still a little town, but not quite so sleepy. It is the home of the Ozark Folk Center as well as a mecca for all sorts of music--mountain, folk, country, spiritual, bluegrass, etc.

First the Ozark Folk Center.The Ozark Folk Center is a unique state park devoted to preserving Ozark crafts, music, and heritage. Traditional craft demonstrations, live music performances, living histories, apprentice programs and workshops tell the story of this mountain culture. Here we visited broom makers, coopers, knife makers, soap makers, weavers, carvers, etc.

While wandering about, we happened upon an old man, fiddle in hand, who was sitting on an old desk and telling stories. His accent was wonderful and he told stories and played us a tune and danced about.


And everywhere was music:



Then there is the music. It is everywhere. Its in the Folk Center. Its in one of seven different nightly shows in the area. It is in the CourtHouse Park--the night we were there, there were seven sessions going on simultaneously. Here is a link to a favorite of ours, Shady Grove, sung by the Patchwork Gals on their album Patchwork Stringband. (Unfortunately, their web site is down and so I cannot provide a link or tell you how to get a hold of this album. Their address is P.O.Box 812, Mountain View, AR, 72560.) At the Brickshy (that is as in "brick shy of a full load") we heard the Leatherwoods. They have a ton of albums, but again, I cannot find a website for them. Here is Angel Band from their Gospel Treasures Album. (Their address is Dancing Doll Music, P.O.Box 64, Mountain View, AR 72560.) And lastly, here is a group that we did not get to see--maybe next time. This is a little traditional tune called Whiskey Before Breakfast from their Harmony Combined Album. (Their address is Harmony, 858 Crooked Ridge Road, Mauntain View, AR 72560.) Here are some pictures of the Leatherwoods.

honeymoon

This past month we went on a honeymoon. It wasn’t the first time (that happened over 40 years ago) and it’s not going to be the last because from now on we’re going to go on a honeymoon at least twice a year. And why not? It seems to me that honeymoons are far too important to be wasted on newlyweds who have yet to catch on to what’s really involved in being married – let alone why it’s so important to do everything possible to stay that way. And honeymoons can help. That’s because the whole idea of a honeymoon is to give husbands and wives a chance to get away for a little while and spend their time paying attention to each other….paying lots of attention to each other. Unfortunately that’s something that married people often stop doing after a while. Years ago (when I was a much younger married woman) I began watching older married couples in restaurants. You could generally spot them by how bored they looked. They seemed completely disinterested in the other person…as if they had nothing at all to say to one another. And I used to wonder if being married a long time meant that eventually people simply run out of things to talk about. I hoped not. I hoped that I would never end up sitting across from Denny in a restaurant – or any other place - with a bored look on my face because there was nothing else going on between us that was worth talking about. But 40 years of being married has taught me a thing or two about how easy it can be for life to get in the way of the things that matter the most. Unless we're careful. And now that we've both been retired for a while it's clear we need to be real careful. I think honeymoons are one way to do that. So we spent a couple of days hidden away in a secluded cabin nestled in the rolling hills of southern Wisconsin -- only 60 miles away from home! And we're going to do it again, because in addition to being every bit as romantic as our first honeymoon, this time we found that because we know each other so much better than we did before it was even nicer being alone together!