We are now in the end of the fine month of December here at the smallholding and I hear many times a week the lament that the snow has come and how another winter has come and yet I think many times “Well it’s Canada?!?!?!”
I find it hard to grasp why people constantly complain about something that comes every year; it is not as though it is a surprise that winter is coming, it is actually a season to me of practicality, for without it we would not get the pleasure of Spring and the renewal of growth. Winter is a period of rest and preparation for renewal of life. It is also a great time for reflection and and can be useful in getting things accomplished during the long quiet winter evenings.
Not too many years ago Winter was when new clothes were made, shoes were repaired or new ones cobbled and fabric was woven on looms from the fall harvest of natural fibers, whether wool, cotton or flax. It was also a time when many children had the chance to go to school since they were needed on the farms during the growing and harvesting seasons more often than not.
Women were the heartbeat of a household in many ways for without them the home could not function. People have forgotten how little we need to do to live. Now we buy our clothes, food and goods from stores with little regard for the labour required to create them. When one considers that people had to raise the fibers required for their clothing, then harvest it, prepare it for weaving, weave it then actually make their clothing, you can understand why people had fewer outfits.
Living on the smallholding with an objective to growing our own with the goal of self sustainability makes you read a lot of books and many of them give you insight to our ancestors way of life. Lessons learned the hard way, sometimes the easy way. Neighbours were important and community was small many times but large in others.
An example is in the small village I live outside of, a friend opened up a small thrift store in the spring of 2018. It has been an amazing experience of locals contributing goods which we then sort, turn around and sell to the community for low prices they can afford. The shop is staffed by volunteers with all the profits going back to the community. For Christmas we provided working families with 40 turkey dinners and 66 children of varying ages with presents as well as stockings. Not a small feat for our small group and it has allowed me to meet many people in our new hometown.
(The owner also brainstormed a most amazing Remembrance Day window!)
Sometimes the hardest part about moving to an area totally new to you is having to make new connections, new friends.
Serendipity is amazing in the way I met the owner. A few years ago we had an exposure of a secretive movement on the part of county counsel to sell a waste disposal property with a 20 year old approval. In setting up a meeting place for the first meeting that the public attended I met her through her access to a meeting place. Over time and through the beginning of the thrift store we have become friends with a lot in common. On a side note we received the news just before Christmas that our Environmental Minister has stripped the certificate of approval from the site!
I like to think of this picture as the caped crusader of victory!
So as December closes and we rapidly move towards 2020, I look back on what the last year has brought to my life. Reflection is always an adventure as it teaches you what is important and what is not. Quality vs quantity trumps all.
Life moves on and we are just along for the ride, players on the stage. Winter is a time to rejoice for the next season ahead.