On Gossamer Thread

    It frosted last night. We've been on alert the last few days, waiting for the inevitable; still, it was a surprise when Elizabeth told me that she saw frost on the grass this morning. As if in doubt, she tiptoed outside and peeked over the edge of the drained swimming pool. A thin layer of ice had formed on top of the leftover water–a sure sign that the frost was real, and not just a figment of her imagination.      

    I grow sentimental everytime the cold returns, knowing that all I hold dear is about to pass away until next year. Goodbye to the cheerful chirping of the crickets, goodbye to the tender eggplant blossoms, and goodbye to the cucumber vines wrapping their delicate fingers around the nylon netting of my husband's “Cucumber Haus.” The joy of growing a garden and the delights therein will have to wait for another season, for now the ground must rest.   

    I’m never really prepared for the drastic change in weather. Surely I could have spent more mornings at the garden’s edge, sipping coffee and reading my Bible, or drawing a nature specimen under the tree by the fence. But, it was such an ill-tempered summer–too hot with barely a drop of rain. It certainly won’t go down as one of my favorites.
    Anyway, it’s too late now. Just to prove it the tomatoes were drooped over this morning like old women–mere shadows of their former glory. The over-ripe fruit hung low on the vines. their skins mottled and translucent from the penetrating cold. I looked among the leaves for signs of the black and yellow garden spider. I remember other days, more temperate, when I saw her strung like a single jewel on gossamer thread, basking in the sun’s warm rays. But she, too, has shriveled away in the night…I think I’ll miss her most of all.
   

                                               Copyright 2005 By Jill Novak
                                       All Rights Reserved

7:32 PM - Oct. 28, 2005 - post comment

Once again , my heart has been touched

Dearest Sister Jill.................you once again have managed to touch the heart of your sister. I am always in awe of how the Lord inspires you to write with such eloquence. Your gift of seeing things the way you do and then to convey them, is so amazing to me. I treasure you sweet sister. All my love, your sister June

JillNovak - 11:59 AM - Nov. 3, 2005

I will miss her, too.

I too wish I sat out more with Summer, Jill. Wished I spent more evenings on the porch swing, rocking Shalom and watching the sunset. Now the cold, wet rain of November is smashing the window panes here tonight, and Shalom is 5 months old. Time passes. Guess I had better enjoy the Now of late Autumn...and the children of Today....before they pass too. Yes, Jill, yes.
Love to Jill,
Ann V.

HolyExperience - 7:32 PM - Nov. 9, 2005

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