by
Jean Hughes
June 19, 1995
Days lengthen with terrific speed, when summer is almost here. Spring knows the secret of success: Always leave 'em wanting more.

This is the first day of freedom for the two grade-school-aged children who spend their summers with me. Chores have been established, and now they run ahead of me to the creek's edge. The water is low, and they wade across, splashing each other and enjoying the day.

They ask to run back home to get their raft. I lie on the sandy shore and listen to the cardinals sing. It is an excellent day for loafing. In the deep blue sky, two buzzards sail above me. They circle in opposite directions. Every time they meet, the one flying counter-clockwise wings above, while the one circling clockwise soars beneath.

I glance down the creek and see the children coming around the bend. They slosh along in the middle of the water, hauling their raft upstream. Sitting on the raft is one of our Border Collies, Napper. At times, a dog's life is to be envied.

* * *
Today, I walk where bedstraws and fleabane daisies are in flower. Occasionally, there is a pale pink daisy among the white blossoms. On every side of me, red-eyed vireos call. "Here me. Hear me. Here I am," they declare. I wish, just once, one would show itself and say, "See me. See me. Here I am." But they are ventriloquists and their favorite game is hide and seek, with me always being "it."

I hear a low hum, and look up to see a small, one-engine plane flying low. Although I stand where red-wings sing, with my feet in stray alfalfa blossoms, just for a moment I wish I could get a glimpse from on high of this beautiful spot --a bird's-eye view from the little plane that hums away into the blue.

* * *
Last night the fireflies winked across the garden, flashing lights that looked as big as the moon. The children and I are planning a moonlight picnic. I do not want them to grow up never knowing the night, never smelling intense nighttime fragrances, and never seeing and feeling the beauty of half their hours on earth.

Every night, before going to bed, I step onto my porch for a moment. Tonight, silent stars and fireflies fill my world. A barred owl's call breaks the silence. We hoot a duet for a few minutes. I whisper good night to all the creatures who prowl under the stars, and to the earth, which nourishes us all.


In summer, barbecuing is not only for picnics, but for every day.

Rail-Splitter Barbecue Sauce
Simmer together for 15 minutes: 1 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup sugar, 
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce, 1 cup hot catsup, 2 t. each of 
salt and dry mustard, 1/4 t. black pepper and 2 large minced 
cloves of garlic.
This sauce is good for brushing ribs or chicken, and may be 
used for cooked beef or pork. Marinate cooked meats in the 
sauce for 1 hour, before final heating and serving.
Makes 1 pint.

Our dog, Bal, and our duck, Lou Lou, have a unique relationship. Every morning, I have to entice Lou Lou out of her pen in the barn, catch her and carry her to her outside pen, where she can enjoy ducking in her plastic pond and scrounging for worms. This morning she got away from me and went to hide under the Jeep. I sent Bal to fetch her.

Working on her stomach, as Border Collies often do, Bal crept closer and closer. Suddenly, one of the other dogs ran toward the Jeep. Lou Lou flew to Bal and cuddled under her chin.

Bal is a gentle creature. She got a startled look, glanced at me, and raised her eyebrows as if to say, "What do I do now?" Many creatures on this earth are flustered by complete trust, and the innocence of love.

If I allow Lou Lou to roam in the yard when Bal is not outside, she comes onto the porch, and quacks and quacks until I let her friend out. A duck that calls her dog! What next?

* * *
At end of day, I walk down the rows in the garden. Along its edge, yellow cinquefoils, with heart-shaped petals, blossom under the waning moon, the Flower Moon that ushers in the warm and happy days of summertime.
Copyright 1995, Jean Hughes.

Jean's book of ramblings and recipes "A Country Mile of Winter" and her book of poetry "The Earth's My Home" are available for $4.95 each plus $1.30 for postage and handling. Her nature letter "Diary of a Back Yard Naturalist", published 5 times yearly, is available for $12.50 per year. Ten of Jean's favorite recipes will be included free with each book or nature letter ordered. Order from...

Country Mile Publications
616 E. Monroe St.
Delphi, Indiana 46923

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