Notice: Abundance
Nature is so abundant, and here is Nova Scotia that is especially evident in August. Apples are set on trees and growing every day, berries are in ditches and on roadsides everywhere waiting to be eaten, and tomatoes and cucumbers ripen in the garden. Abundance is all around us, and it’s such a lovely thing to think about. Plants just want to grow. Annuals hurry to drop seeds to grow next year, while perennials slowly peak and fade, strengthening their roots for next season. They’re cooperating with the bees, who are working at full tilt in August, buzzing in and around the flowers as they gather nectar and pollen to get them through the winter months that will be here before we know it. In stark contrast to January’s grey darkness and bleak landscapes (also beautiful in their own way), August is a delicious riot of colour and life.
Make
Herb-infused Honey
Now is the time of year to find some local honey. I like to use whole herbs that I’ve dried myself; I prefer dried so that there isn’t any extra moisture being introduced into the honey. We keep honeybees and have access to the very best and most beautiful honey; if you can find local honey, you’ll notice a big difference from grocery store honeys.
Ingredients:
3 parts honey
1 part dried herb leaves or stems (rosemary or lavender are lovely)
Clean glass jar
Method:
You can do this one of two ways.
Quick: (This method is faster and is ready to use almost immediately, but the heat can be detrimental to some of the wonderful things in local unpasteurized honey): Gently heat the honey and herbs over low heat for 10-15 minutes, remove the herbs and pour into your glass jar.
Slow: Place herbs into jar and pour honey over top. Use a skewer or something similar to poke the herbs under the honey. Let sit for 2-6 weeks, at which point the herbs will have infused the honey. When it tastes good to you, it’s ready to use!
This is lovely used as regular honey (drizzled on toast, yogourt, etc.) and also to soothe sore throats and coughs.
Do
Bask in late summer and its unique feel - notice the warm golden sun and the particular way that it changes through the month; and when you can smell September’s approach in the air. Enjoy the blueberries, raspberries and soon blackberries that you can gather handfuls of and stain your fingers with. Watch the bees stumbling all over flowers and the sheen of flower petals. Drink it all in every chance that you get. When I find myself in one of these moments that seems so absolutely wonderful that it must be impossible, I usually close my eyes, take a few deep breaths, and try to feel in my body how good and real and lovely it is, and recognize what a privilege it is that I am in this time and place and am able to enjoy this moment. The most tragic (and preventable) thing to me is to imagine the end of my life and wishing that I had seen all of these beautiful everyday moments for the magic that they are - the joy, privilege and delight of living on earth in this time.
Re-reading this, I can see how it might seem morbid to some - but to me, recognizing how fleeting our time on earth is, is how to live a good life. It influences our decisions and how we go about our lives, making every moment all the richer. Memento mori.