Today I am thankful for...
Shafts of wheat. Yes, you CAN grow wheat in your own backyard. Is it practical? No. Will it be enough wheat to even make a loaf of bread? Probably not. But is it a totally awesome learning experience to see wheat berries germinate, the same wheat berries that I ground into flour, and then to actually see new wheat berries growing? Oh yeah.
Garden harvest. Rhubarb, a bit late. (It started the season under a pile of wood, so I'm impressed I got this much. Our kale (in the front yard) is doing awesome. The unlucky souls in the backyard are still recovering from the rabbit attack. Small spinach, which I planted a bit late, but which will be perfect for putting in smoothies. ("Mom, taste spinach." "No, you can't taste the spinach. Just drink it.") And look at those sage leaves - big, sturdy, full of texture. I love growing sage - mainly because nothing eats it. It is just too bad we don't have more of a use for it. Since we don't eat meat, we really only use it in some butternut squash dishes. We also have tons of basil and I have already made several batches of basil pesto, with some random spinach and kale leaves thrown in. I never get tired of smelling the basil.
The kindness of strangers. A couple from the neighborhood that had a large white oak cut down, no use for it, but didn't want it to go to waste. It would have been easier to have the tree company haul it away, but instead, they knocked on the door of a stranger's house, a stranger with a wall of wood in the driveway, and asked if he'd like to take it. Yes, please. So in a little over a week, my husband has hauled (in the trusty Subaru), split, and stacked almost 1 1/2 cords of white oak. We returned the favor by taking them some homemade strawberry muffins and they invited my husband and daughter inside for water, cookies,and conversation.
What are you thankful for today?