The winter solstice closes the door on the events of the year. It is the quiet pause between fall and winter, the time to sleep more, dream more and create our lives anew. Many will be happy to close the door on this crazy year. It has been a tumultuous time for all of us. In the U.S. it has been a game-changer on all fronts. No matter what side of the fence you sit on (or don't!) the political scene has been intense and people are waking up, speaking out and making their voices heard. The next day after the new administration was sworn in, we had a most incredible Women's March, supported by husbands,fathers sons, friends. And now as the year closes,we have the "me too' movement where many are speaking up, both women and men, bringing the atrocities of hidden (or not so hidden) abuse out into the open. Justice is being served.
  On the weather front,my oh my,we've had an interesting year on our planet. Yes,the climate is changing and a huge balancing and cleansing is underway. And it has not been easy. All of our hearts and arms have stretched to comfort those who are suffering. There have been huge clean-ups and loss of homes during hurricanes,floods and fires.People and animals have been displaced and it has been heart wrenching at times. This "re-boot" of lives is a huge theme these days. Another theme is the story of world-wide abuse,greed and power which is now fully visible for all to see. It held sway for too long,hidden in the trenches,and now the abuse is coming out into the light of day. You can't change what you can't see and now it's changing. And that's a good thing.
  In my conversations with Gaia, she is in the midst of her own birthing process, just like we are, and it's intense. But she is happy for the light and that things are changing. She asks us to love ourselves deeply so that we may love her more fully. That's how the abuse of the Earth will end, one healed heart at a time.It will take work on our part and courage as we support each other through this heart healing process. It's not easy as we uncover our painful childhood wounds, unworthiness issues and sometimes abuse. We'll need each other more than ever to help each other through this.The gift will be a planet full of open hearts,as our love spills out into the world and to our precious Earth.The wars we wage with each other and the Earth will fall away as do the poisons of war. Poison doesn't exist in a state of unity, only through division. The honeybees speak of this often with me. They ask me to spread the message of peace so they may thrive. Because they live in unity, a bit of poison brought home to the hive,will kill the hive. The same goes with us. 
  On this Solstice night, let us dream the dream of healing and connection to all. Let us sing the song and dance the dance of Unity that we learn from the beehive. The bees know how to live. It's now time for us to follow their lead... 

Thanksgiving marks the time when the cold seeps in and life in the vegetable garden comes to a close. The fruit trees and perennial flower beds have moved their energy from leaf to root for the winter, while the annuals are finishing up the season with their last flowers and fruits. The summer birds have gone south while the hawks, red-winged blackbirds, juncos, doves, quails, goldfinch and woodpeckers are busy at the feeding station. We still have a few hummers too. They'll be with us through the winter months and we'll continue to fill feeders and throw out seed. We provide extra goodies on the snow-days when the ground gets covered in white.We picked the last of the basil and made our final batch of pesto. That has been a yummy addition to our summer diet! The chard is beautiful this time of year and we'll continue to harvest until it gets really cold. It then slows it's growth until the first warm days of spring and we'll begin to harvest again. The garlic was planted under a hoop-house in early October. They'll grow slowly through the winter, coming alive in the spring for a May harvest. We picked all the tomatoes and tomatillos we could before the hard freeze. Now every window is covered with ripening tomatoes! We're so blessed to have such a spectacular bounty this year. The last harvest of the season comes soon when we pick the beans. Huge bean pods are now drying on the vine and what was once a "wall of flowers" are now pods full of brightly colored beans! We'll be shucking them by the fire all winter long. Steve and I have much to be thankful for. We have windowsills full of fruit, two freezers full of garden bounty, a jar of fresh pesto in the fridge,fresh chard in the garden and a colorful bean harvest to come. Nature has been good to us. Life in the garden is good...