Monday, February 16, 2015

Small Things


This, in Lloyd, is big, big doin's. No. Seriously. I am so excited.

I was thinking yesterday about how when we go to Mexico, the little island of Cozumel, THAT is city-life to me. The shops, the stores, the restaurants, the broad ocean-front road, the traffic, the churches, the homes, the markets, the hustle and bustle of it all. And yet, I feel a bit disingenuous when I tell people that I live in the country because I do have neighbors on three sides of me. Yes, we have the amenities of country living in that we have a garden and chickens and ducks, but we also have neighbors. And a post office. And a dump. And a truck stop. And the office of the water system. And churches.
Still.
Papa Jay's is going to be a big, huge deal here. I hope they are good people and if they are, I wish them great luck.

It is so gray today. 100% chance of rain tonight which will be lovely on the newly planted peas and potatoes. When I went to the dump yesterday, the attendant is a man whom I do not see there very often. He is kind and helpful and we talked about the weather and that led to me telling him that my husband was planting the potatoes at that very moment.
"I need to do that too," he said.
"And it's time to plant peas," I said.
"Yes it is," he agreed. "I plants lots of peas."
"What kind?" I asked.
"Oh, all kinds. White acre, crowder, black-eyed peas..."
"How big is your garden?" I asked him.
"Forty acres," he said modestly.
"FORTY ACRES! That's not a garden. That's a farm!"
"I just mess with it. I love it," he said. "I was raised to live off the land. Makes me happy."

I fell a little in love with him. And now I will be thinking of him growing his greens and his watermelons, his Silver Queen corn, his beautiful white acre peas, tending his "garden" on his tractor. Being happy.

All right. Here's a thing I really want to do in Lloyd. With all of my heart.


I could put it in the little park area by the post office or even in my front yard, in front of the fence. Mr. Moon MUST build me one. I can't think of anything that would make me happier. 
Shopping at the Goodwill for children's books, for adult books. Seeing what people take, what they leave. If they do. 
Oh! I have to do this. 
I've been aware of this sweet trend for awhile but it just struck my heart when Lis and I were in Tallahassee and saw one that I had to do this in Lloyd. 

Well. That's about all I have to say. I think I will have a day of mostly solitude today. The boys are not coming out, Mr. Moon is going to auction. I will be here with the cats and the birds. The robins are flocking in and are all over Lloyd and in my backyard too. They are moving northwards but will be here for awhile to eat and plump up. They are such cheerful signs of spring. I tell all of you who live in colder places that your robins are on their way. They have simply taken time in their journey to rest and feed. You will see them soon. I will think of all of you tenderly when they take flight and leave, hoping that when you see the robins this year, you, in turn, will think of me.

Love...Ms. Moon

13 comments:

  1. I tell people I live in the country and to me it is coming from the fourth largest city population-wise and 3rd I think in area, but really, I live just outside the town limits of a small town, about 9,800 people. I have neighbors too though it is a small neighborhood plonked down on the edge of agricultural fields (and my street is the one with the most houses on it) and I have a big 12 acre field behind me. I can't believe you are already planting and we haven't even built a single raised bed over at the shop yet.

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  2. You just made my heart twang and eyes puddle. To think my Robins are safe and warm with you right now and plumping themselves up made my day. Spring seems so very far away right now. We currently have a midday wind chill temp of around 15 to 20 below zero. Tell my friends to sit tight - No need to rush back yet. X

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  3. I plan to put in a free little library too ... so if Mr. Moon were to build an extra ...

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  4. YES to the little library. My son built one for my dad and mama for Christmas this last year ( how is it Feb already?). We put it in, they promptly provided the bench right next to it and it brings so much joy to them:). From one family of readers to another, you will truly love it.

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  5. Thinking that my Spring robins are spending some time in your yard is very nice. Thank you for taking care of them. Tell them to plump up and hang tight for awhile. We have a long way to go before they want to be here!

    Love the library idea. We have a bookshelf like that at work. It is awesome.

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  6. I'm with Camille and Jill - to think the robins we love to see in April are just now enjoying your hospitality makes me smile. I will think of you when I see them, for sure.

    Love the idea of the little library.

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  7. Oh, yes. I love the little library! I've read about ones like that and ones that just have poems on single sheets of paper. Oh, I hope you do it.
    And the country store. Fabulous. I hope it's good.

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  8. Well, the country is relative, I suppose! I think almost anyone with chickens and a vegetable garden can qualify to say they live in the country, though nowadays admittedly some very urban folks are doing those things...my brother has a chicken permit in Jacksonville, but he hasn't taken advantage of it yet.

    I do love the idea of those libraries. I think it's cool that books have become so ubiquitous they can be freely given away.

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  9. I love that wee bookcase! LOVE.

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  10. Those little libraries are under fire in Los Angeles county -- for some reason they're being cited in tax evasion stuff. On the other hand, can we say we live in the country if we have chickens? I personally don't have any, but many people who live in Los Angeles, right in the middle of the city, do. We call them "hipsters," here.

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  11. Ellen Abbott- Around here the general wisdom is to have peas and potatoes (and onions) in the ground by Valentine's Day. I believe this is the closest we've ever come.

    Camille- I will gladly let them stay as long as they like. Bless you for living in those conditions.

    NOLA- He's pretty busy building tree stands for hunting. I'll be lucky if I can get him to build ONE little library.

    Lisa- Yes. I feel compelled to do this with all of my heart!
    And a bench! Oh my.

    Jill- Hotels often have those shelves or bookcases too. It's always so interesting to see what people leave behind for others to read.

    Jenny_o- Me too!

    Denise- I think books would go over better in Lloyd but I LOVE the idea of the take-a-poem, leave-a-poem box.

    Steve Reed- It is a wonderful thing, isn't it? And how exactly DO you define country? Cars up on blocks? A tractor in the yard? A yard ornament made from a bath tub or a painted semi-tire? Oh. That's just North Florida, maybe.
    And isn't that a beautiful thing about books?

    Birdie- Yes!

    Elizabeth- You have GOT to be kidding me. If no one is making any money, how can there be an issue?
    And you know, maybe I AM a hipster. How do I tell? My ironic overalls? Oh, wait. They're not ironic.

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  12. We have that kind of library in our laundry room. People sit and read or take the books and leave others. I'm always impressed by the quality and the range of books; some real classics on those shelves. I love your little library idea. Imagine, too, how Owen and Gibson will remember it when they are grown.

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  13. I am definitely in the country. No stop lights. A couple of juke joints and that's it. No gas stations or grocery stores. But I can drive 30 minutes and get to the city. The best of both worlds.

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