When a friend of mine suggested experimenting with spruce tips, and with the forest about the only place open, I thought ‘why not’. And what a delightful discovery the spruce tip harvest has been.

So far, it is the favourite of my foraged foods. Standing on my back deck I am able to pluck, like a berry, this delicate little treat. A very pretty, yellowy, lime green, paint brush with a crisp citrus flavour pops straight into my mouth. It is a burst of flavour and one tip at a time is enough.

And, the act of removing the spruce tips also prunes the gigantic Norwegian spruce tree that graces our back yard.

With it’s tangy citrus flavour, the little spruce tip is perfect for tossing into a salad. The spruce tip can also flavour vinegar, be baked into cookies, pickled with some sprigs of dill, and dried for tea.

Spruce tip tea comes with great medicinal value. Research shows that the tiny spruce tip contains Shikimic Acid, which is used as a basis of many chemical influenza preparations. So if you are feeling a little under the weather this next cold/flu season, come and see me for a cuppa.

Just how good are dandelion greens? Well, my husband enjoys them more than he does asparagus or brussel sprouts! On their own, in a salad, or joined in a frying pan by wild leeks and morels. Not to mention that they are full of minerals like iron, magnesium, and potassium, and are full of antioxidants.

• 

The first food of the forest floor pops up each spring with garlicky, green foliage and an even tastier white bulb; to cleanse our bodies of the winter blahs with a wonderful tonic of vitamins and minerals.

I was first introduced to this culinary delight, a sweet garlicky treat referred to by many names; wild leeks, ramps, wild onions, allium trivium, a few decades ago by my then soon to be father-in-law. A wonderful, kindly, country gentleman who loved the forest and all of it’s earthly gifts.

This spring being newly retired and with lots of time on my hands due to covid19 isolation, I thought I’d forage for, and experiment with this interesting food.

Wild leeks can be found in most sugar maple forests. Surrounded by the beautiful trillium. We were able to transplant a little bit of both into our forest. Leaving this years found plot to rejuvenate and be discovered by other adventurous foragers.

The year, 2020, is becoming more interesting with each passing day.

Today, a Polar Vortex blasted us with cold winds and streamers of white, wintery snow. People awaking early to visit newly reopened Garden Centers and Hardware stores were greeted with weather warnings.

Weather Advisory.

Saturday, 09 May, 2020

Weather travel advisory in effect for the morning and early afternoon. Brief but intense lake effect snow bands off Georgian Bay will bring low visibility and heavy snow to the area today. Conditions will improve this afternoon.

Ontario Storm Tracker

Barrie – Collingwood – Hillsdale

Innisfil – New Tecumseth – Angus

Motorists should note that in lake effect snow, conditions can vary from no snow to very low visibility in a very short distance. Be prepared for rapid changes in weather and road conditions.

A couple of hours later, people on social media were posting pictures of snowmen. Green grass and decks were once again visible. Winter is once again disappearing…. Spring has sprung!!!!!

We have the cute, furry, grey/brown bunny rabbit that has homes under our shed, our back deck, and our front deck. Last summer, he ate the tops off of my carrots and beets just as they were readying for harvest.

This spring, this little fellow began nibbling at the tender, green shoots sprouting in my husband’s nicely manicured flower beds. And out came the live trap! Mr. Bunny Rabbit was going to be relocated. Far, far away, a couple of concessions down the road.

But before Mr Cottontail was able to locate the smell of the tasty treats, Pepe ‘not’ Le Pew decided to investigate.

He was big! He was bold! He was beautiful!

Unlike Pepe Le Pew, this dude was not trying to catch Penelope Pussycat: attempting to sway her, with his heavy French accent “I am Pepe Le Pew, your love.” “You are my peanut, I am your brittle. ” Instead he was curiously studying his surroundings, and when we noticed that he was trying to dig his way through the fenced bottom of the cage; out came the burgundy blanket!

Darkness ensued. The door opened. There was a light at the end of the tunnel.

He didn’t dance and swoon as the original Pep would have, instead he waddled off as quickly as his short, little legs would take him, and into the forest he did head.

A smooth, robust bottle of red wine, fine chocolate, and a good book, with jazzy blues playing in the background perfectly describes my first day of retirement.

A nice bottle of Apothic Red, “inspired by the ‘Apothica’, a mysterious place where wine was blended and stored in the 13th century Europe, was conveniently available in our little corner store. A box of handcrafted Belgian Chocolates created in a little town further along the way, was picked up via curbside delivery. Due to covid19, I didn’t have a new book, so I pulled from my bookshelf of Margaret Atwood books.

In the field of work that I have retired from, self care is very important, both for the families we worked with and for ourselves. During one of the more tumultuous times in my life, my husband recognized that I was in great need for some self care. Being a stay at home mom at the time, finances were tight. My dear husband turned inside out every pocket, purse and couch cushion til he had gleaned enough to cover a Margaret Atwood reading and the purchase of the book she would reading from… So I pulled Wilderness Tales from my bookshelf and immersed myself in the written word.

A nice break in my day happened when a couple of friends dropped by with an impromptu concert of Connie Kaldor, another great Canadian artist, songs. Good friends, good music, good vibes.

Covid19 has kind of halted any retirement plans made. So I am just going to settle in and groove to whatever comes my way.

“Is the spring coming?”he said. “What is it like?” “It is the sun shining on the rain, and the rain falling on the sun.” Frances Hodgson Burnett

Don’t wait for someone to bring you flowers. Plant your own garden and decorate your soul. Luther Burbank

Come with me into the woods, where spring is advancing, as it does, no matter what, not being singular or particular, but one of the forever gifts, and certainly visible. Mary Oliver.

That is one good thing about this world – There are always sure to be more springs. L.C. Montgomery

It is spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you’ve got it, you want – oh, you don’t know quite what it is you want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so! Mark Twain

Flowers are the music of the ground. From earth’s lips spoken without sound. Edwin Carran

April has searched the winterland And found her petted flowers again; She kissed them to unfold her leaves, She coaxed them with her sun and rain,

And filled the grass with green content, And made the woods and clover vain. Hannah R Hudson

In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” Margaret Atwood

John 1:1-2. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.

The author of the Gospel of John, is the apostle John, ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’. The words of this fourth book of the New Testament flow from the pages of the Bible directly into my heart.

‘Read the New Testament’, is #21 on my list of 65+ things to do after turning 65.

I decided to start with the book of John. It is my favourite book in the Bible. Now I will go back and start at the beginning of the New Testament, with the book of Matthew.

John 3:16. For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

I am writing these lines while watching Jesus Christ Superstar on TV, and the words I read earlier today come flowing back into my brain.

Today has been a very quiet, and peaceful, Easter Sunday. Easter dinner, with just my husband and I, was somehow just as rewarding and special as a large family gathering.

And the easter bunny didn’t stop by.

John 21:29. Then Jesus told him, Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Not since the Spanish flu, in 1918, has the world come to such a complete stop.

Parks are closed, the malls are closed, all but essential services are closed. Gas is cheap, but we have nowhere to go….

As difficult as this continues to be, signs of optimism are in the air as government committees are being formed to help our economy recover after this Covid19 pandemic is over.

On April 7th, John Prine, always the singer-songwriter, composer, recording artist and live performer, passed away due to complications of Covid19. One of the things we had planned to do this summer, was to be at for Mariposa Folk Festival where John Prine would be performing, helping to celebrate the festivals 60th anniversary.

We know, and love, the words to his songs so well.

I particularly love these words from the song, Spanish Pipedream.

We blew up the TV, threw away the papers. Went to the country, built us a home. Had a lot of children, fed them all peaches. They all found Jesus, on their own.

I’m so glad we’ve lived our life close to these words. It makes days like these so much easier.

• 

As winter leaves, and spring arrives. The days are cold, and getting warmer. Song birds sing, awakening us, as we remember: everyone is staying home today.

Or most of us anyway. Working from home, caring for children at home. Or at home because our jobs have been postponed.

Except for those who have to go out. Our health care providers, our emergency workers, and essential employees, working so that all of our needs will continue to be met.

As our old normal fades, a new normal emerges.

A new chapter in our lives is being written. And we are the author. How this chapter is written will be personal for each one of us. A personal journey of solitude and isolation.

It is a time for deep self-reflection. A time to discover our strengths, and our weaknesses, and our supports.

A time to read a new book, listen to a new song, learn a new dance. A time to educate ourselves in the wonderful world of technology. A world of technology that allows us to remain in visual and verbal contact with those we hold dear, anywhere in the world. It is a time for spiritual growth.

A time to discover a world of virtual churches, virtual coffeehouses and virtual boardgames.

As tragic, what the world is experiencing is, it is also a time of learning and discovery.

Children, playing in mud puddles, going on backyard scavenger hunts, and painting flowers on windows. The art of baking bread, cooking from scratch, and preparing for spring gardens, has returned.

A time for science, and medicine, and great minds. A time for global co-operation.

All of our chapters will be different, individual, personal, important. Our chapter will prepare us for the next phase of our lives. How will your chapter read?

•