Sunday Evening Reflection: A Farewell to September

Posted byRebecca BuddPosted inElizabeth Rogers Community Garden, LadyBudd, Sunday Evening Reflection, Vancouver Food StrategyTags:, , , ,

I welcome October, the season of gold and mists, of lingering sunshine and darkening clouds, of harvest and thanksgiving. I gather my books and supply of fragrant teas, much like a squirrel puts away her acorns for the coming winter.

And yet, my heart still remembers the loveliness of September and the way the days softly transition our side of the world from summer to autumn. There is still time to feel the warmth of a summer breeze, even as the sunset brings the chill of the earth that yearns for a time of rest.

Tonight, I am saying a gentle farewell to September, with a walk through the Elizabeth Rogers Community Garden.

“The Vancouver Food Strategy is a plan to create a just and sustainable food system for the city, and helps us to meet our social, environmental, economic, and health goals. It builds on years of food systems initiatives and grassroots community development, and considers all aspects of the food system – from seed to table to compost heap and back again.” Vancouver City Food Strategy

Published by Rebecca Budd

Blogger, Visual Storyteller, Podcaster, Traveler and Life-long Learner

46 thoughts on “Sunday Evening Reflection: A Farewell to September”

      1. Many hugs to you. xxxxxx And thank you again for the lovely post. And kind words. Turned cold here. Getting dark earlier and earlier too. But they say it will be nice tomorrow so that is good

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    1. Thank you so much for the introduction to John Clare. This is the first time I have heard of this poet. I just read his mini biography. There are some that have the gift of words, despite their circumstances or lack of education. I found this interesting: “As Clare began to write more, his parents unwittingly became his first critics. In order to ensure an honest, objective assessment, Clare would read his poetry to his parents as if it had been written by another author, keeping what they liked and scrapping what they didn’t.” Parents have a way of thinking their children are brilliant, so this was a great way to ensure impartiality. Sending hugs along with my gratitude.

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  3. Dear Rebecca,
    what a great farewell to late summer and greeting the autumn. We immediately loved your comparison with the squirrel. Yes, we get our teas ready, our books and a cosy seat at the window.
    This Community Garden is a great idea. We have the tradition of the allotments here and in Germany is called “Schrebergarten”.
    Wishing you a wonderful week
    Love and Hugs
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

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    1. Did you notice all the gentle colours, Klausbernd?!! Even the bold pink/red was given a subdued tone. This is a wonderfully mellow season that brings to mind a feeling of the warmth and comfort of community. It goes back to my childhood when I visited my grandparents farms (both sides) – harvest, canning, organizing for the winter months. I just looked up “Schrebergarten” and found some interesting comparisons. Vancouver is moving to condo/apartment living and away from single family dwelling based on price and environmental considerations. Vancouver is running out of land so the alternative it to build upwards. Urban gardens are a way to remain connected to nature. It is wonderful to begin the week with my dear friends The Fab Four of Cley. Hugs and love coming back across the ocean to Cley-Next-The Sea!!!

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      1. Dear Clanmother,
        I am was a city child from a family where even the great-grandparents lived in cities, most of them in Berlin or Essen, an industrial city in the Ruhr-district. My love for nature and gardens came later in my life. But now I love our garden.
        A lot of modern architects like Le Corbusier recommended to build upwards. That’s much more ecological. And heard it from friends in Berlin and Hamburg that there is quite a strong movement running urban gardens. National Geographic covered urban garden in New York City a while ago. We like this idea.
        With lots of hugs and love from the Norfolk coast
        The Fab Four of Cley
        🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

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    1. Isn’t is wonderful how humanity comes alive within nature, even when nature is a little garden that boldly thrives in the midst of a busy city. Thank you for your company, Julie – always appreciate our conversations.

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    1. Thank you for stopping by – it is so easy to travel virtually from one side of Canada to the other these days. Yesterday morning, I enjoyed the sunshine with you on your side and now you stopped by on my side. One day, they will create an app that will let us slip through our screens and meet up in person. Beam me up, Scottie!!!

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  6. Thank you for sharing your walk through this beautiful fall garden. I love the photos of the large sun flowers, the pretty dark red roses and the narrow path that leads through the garden. Your video is beautiful and so well done. We have said goodbye to beautiful September (even if our view has been quite narrow due to the virus) and now into a favorite autumn month. I recall that this season was a favorite time for your father and I think he passed on this to you. OCTOBER! ! ! Enjoy! !

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    1. Dad loved this season too, didn’t he? There is a mellowness to the colours and a fresh crispness in the air. For me, it is a time of renewal, of going back to school, and a time of learning. I am so glad that you enjoyed the video. I had been on my way to view a freshly painted mural from the 2020 Vancouver Mural Festival when I came upon this garden. It seemed to say, come in and enjoy. So I did!

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    1. Thank you. Dave – your comments are always so encouraging! This is my favourite season, which I think goes back to my childhood when I visited the grandparents farm (both sides). Harvest time brought everyone together for the last great effort before winter set in. I am fascinated by how cities are looking at urban gardens and growing our “own food” as a key element in Vancouver Food strategy.

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    1. I am so glad that you joined me, Linda! I have been offline for a couple of day and have come back online last night. Sorry for the delay in responding!

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  10. A beautiful reflection, Rebecca ! Despite your recall of the month that gave me birth, slipping away ever faster, your words of “And yet, my heart still remembers the loveliness of September and the warmth of a summer breeze”. Ah that most important summer breeze, be but near forgiving, said month that means to steals away what’s left of summer, held be my favourite season.

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    1. I love your choice of words, Jean-Jacques. There is poetry in every sentence. Thank you for sharing this moment of reflection. The time of Thanksgiving has come and I am looking forward to the pumpkin pie!! Isn’t it wonderful to enter a new month together!!!

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  11. Rebecca this is a beautiful and interesting post. I loved seeing the gorgeous flowers. For a couple of weeks it was feeling like the beginning of autumn here. But then the highs went back up to 90. Yes, it’s “high desert” but that’s uncharacteristically warm for this time of year. However, the mornings are nice and cool. I expect we’ll skip autumn, as much as I like the season, and go straight from summer to winter. I never thought winter would become my favorite season! I hated it so for the past 25 years. Now it only snows a few times per winter, and it melts quickly. And my cacti look quite startled when the snow sticks to them. LOL. Hugs on the wing.

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    1. Yikes!! 90 degrees! It has been uncharacteristically warm in Vancouver as well. We are in the 65 – 70 degree range, which is higher than the average. When I lived in Northern Manitoba we had winter for about 7 months of the year. Snowfall would come in September and I remember that snowfall would come unexpectedly in June, always when we were in the middle of a camping trip out in the bush far away from the small mining town where we lived. Frances (Mom) always had a stash of tea for the winter season. So over the years, we have moved ever closer to the lower mainland of British Columbia, the warmest part of Canada. When the snow does come, all the photographers are out with their cameras because it never last long – only a day or two. Thank you for joining me on my walk through the urban garden. I love our conversations together!

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  12. I’m just a little envious, Rebecca, sitting here in the heat of spring. Really, it’s only spring and yet the sun shines relentlessly here in my little corner of Australia. Spring is generally a good taste of the summer to come. Woe, oh, woe!
    And this is one reason why autumn/fall is my most favourite season. The cool breezes, the changing colours, the calm that seems to soothe all living creatures with the peacefulness that is synonymous with this most beautiful season.

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  13. Beautiful, Rebecca! We also have an urban garden and ecology center, but alas most of the programs are now primarily virtual. I thank God for his beautiful creation and our remaining capacity to go outdoors and enjoy it and pray we will continue to have real access to all the gorgeous wonders you share with us. Currently here, the wild green way along the lake has that riotous but weary look of autumn, with all the wild flowers, weeds, and shrubs competing for the last remaining space before the frost sets in. I love its chaos and palette and look forward to the first dusting of snow after the gloom of November which is right around the corner. Right now the wild purple New England asters are showing off right on cue. Thank you again for this blast of color through your awesome video, photography and cozy writing 🙂

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    1. I am so happy to have your company. You have a marvelous blog that reminds my of my father who was a WWII veteran. He was stationed in Okinawa but I know very little of his time there. Looking forward to connecting. P.S. You are very observant!!!

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  15. Such a calming and peaceful walk through this beautiful autumn garden. The sunflowers really waved to me. 😃 Your description of mellow September brought to mind the beautiful song which I first recollect being sung by Nana Mouskouri in the1970’s. It began,
    “Try to remember the kind of September, when life was slow and oh, so mellow.” Living here in Florida, I really miss the noticeable change of seasons and envy you your squirreling away of your books and fragrant teas in preparation for the coming winter.
    The Vancouver City Food Strategy sounds like an excellent project indeed. 🤗👏🏻

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    1. Sorry I have been so late in responding Sylvia. We have had intermittent internet connection for the past two days. It seems that with all of us on the internet, my service provider is upgrading whatever they upgrade to provide more bandwidth. It feels so strange not to be able to open my computer and link into the world. I know the exact song you are referring to – the one that Nana Mouskouri sang. She has a lovely voice! I had to find it and here it is thanks to my ability to link into the internet tonight! https://youtu.be/_xHsemnPwt4. Vancouver’s food strategy goes right back to a past time when people grew vegetables in their front yards instead of their grass lawns. Hope all is well on your side of the world. Sending many hugs and love!!!

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  16. I’m glad I waited to watch the video until after my frenetic work week was over. (I finally finishing developing that new writing course!) The walk through the garden with the lovely music playing is just what I need to start my three-day weekend of rejuvenation. On another note, I was immediately struck by how lyrical and poetic your introduction was.

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    1. I am delighted to hear that you have finished your writing course project. How wonderful. I have been thinking about how our writing has changed over the decades. As you are probably aware, I am reading Henry James’s “The Aspern Papers,” a recommendation by Dave Astor. The words come alive, but in a more detailed flow compared with our quick sentence structure of today’s writing. Consider this sentence by Henry James in The Aspern Papers:
      “Her face was not young, but it was simple; it was not fresh, but it was mild. She had large eyes which were not bright, and a great deal of hair which was not ‘dressed,’ and long fine hands which were–possibly–not clean.” So much detail and clarity of both the outward and inward description. Thank you for your heartwarming comments about the introduction. Hugs!

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      2. How interesting. Do you think that the subconscious influences our writing and communication style as we gain experience and age?! Oh, you have given me something intriguing to think about today. Thank you!

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      3. I definitely think the subconscious influences our writing and communication style. As we age, the world, our own experiences, and the experiences of others become more nuanced and complex.

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  17. Beautiful garden, lovely video and your waxing on autumn is sweet prose.
    The Food Strategy Program is the way to food respect.
    I fear most think food is something in plastic bags or wrap, in cans or various packagings that have made food convenient. Whether you cook it from a sort of scratch, thaw it in an oven or microwave or eat it straight from the bag of chips, with a tub of pre-made dip, one is not taking advantage of the harvested riches of life.
    Of course, this only includes those of us privileged enough to have the money to do so.
    I fear more of the world is hungry, without much hope, as I type.
    Now, I will go eat my dinner. I made the tomato sauce from our garden tomatoes!
    It’s a start.

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    1. And that is a brilliant start, Resa! Fresh tomatoes are delicious. I especially appreciate your words “food respect” which I have written down on my computer sticky notes. In the past, most of us were connected in some way to the farm or local produce markets so we understood the amount of time and effort that went in to growing and preserving food. I remember that a whole day was giving to making bread and the canning season went on for weeks. The world is very hungry. I admire your food strategy – wholesome, environmentally sound, and so very satisfying. I heading over to your place for dinner. Hugs and love coming your way.

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      1. I bought all the fresh fruits as they came into season, and were vey cheap. I froze them, and now I am in pie baking mode until mid December.
        I’ll be getting apples soon. Anyway, the pies are made with veggie shortening, or oil and whole wheat flour.
        I managed to freeze 18 pies for over the winter last year!
        HUGS!

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