Harvest and Holidays, I believe that some of the magic has gone from the seasons.

The time has flown by, and the season we called Fall, (when I grew up in New England) but this year called "SWELTERING" in CA, has come and gone. Gone with it are the fresh summer fruits that linger in my memory from childhood, juicy peaches, nectarines, apricots and strawberries, actually berries of all kinds. Again, except if you live in Southern CA where we can still buy fresh strawberries, and the new crop will arrive as early as Februaury of 2012.

Can you tell that this Fall in So Cal was hot? I love CA but 102 degrees in Late September is too hot. My Connecticut Yankee genes are screaming for sweater weather by Sept 20th.

I mean really, it did not even cool of by Halloween this year, which is usually the weather marker, when the mercury finally dips below 85. Too much for a big girl with a penchant for cool temperatures.
So now we are are at the end of November, Thanksgiving has come and gone, leaving in it's familial wake a host of memories; Fall, Autumn, the regal foliage of October in New England and the traditions that go along with the season.

I believe that some of the magic has gone from the seasons. Growing up in New England we had definitive seasons and times for doing certain things and eating certain things. You swam in the summer-only, trust me. No wet suits, ice fishing maybe, but summer was the time to swim in the ponds and lakes and the occasional trip to the seaside. Basking in the sun, savoring it's short lived warmth, wading through the humid days and sleeping to the music of the crickets, tree frogs and bull frogs, exuberantly performing their nightly symphonies.

It was at these times that we would anxiously await the first strawberries, fresh and ripe in June and July. You ate as many as you could as often as you could, soon their season was over and frozen was never quite the same. And so the seasons progressed Spring into Summer offering; apricots, peaches, nectarines, plums, raspberry's, blueberries, wild grapes and apples each arriving with a fanfare of Pies, Jams, Cobblers, cereal and pancake toppings etc.

I believe that some of the magic has gone from the seasons. The world is a smaller place than when I was young. You can buy fruit from around the world at any time, strawberries are available almost year round in CA somehow cheapening their sweet ruby glory.

Fruit is harvested too early, gassed to make it appear ripe and often a grave disappointment when consumed. Flavor is not allowed to mature, fruit rarely ripens "on the vine"  anymore.

 I wonder, if I am lucky enough to live to see grandchildren, will Apple Butter simmering on the stove and Pumpkin Pie baking in the oven represent the very real fruits of the Fall Harvest, anticipated all year? Or, will they be a fulfillment of the advertiser's representation of what we should eat in the Fall  at Thanksgiving. Or, the product of a first grade fall pageant, when they learn of the Pilgrims first feast, a history lesson so removed from children's actual experience.

I believe that some of the magic has gone from the seasons. For those of us that live in suburbs or urban areas, the availability of international-seasonal produce year round has somehow further removed us from the seasons, and the earth who graciously repeats them each year. Removed from the inner knowing of time to plant, nurture, harvest and rest. The Byrd's said it best, they had good source material.

 So...go to your local farmers market and buy local produce that's in season and get back to your "roots".

1For everything there is a season,

a time for every activity under heaven.

2A time to be born and a time to die.

A time to plant and a time to harvest.