The Summer's Done Gone By

I know the calendar still says it's summer, and the weather is pretty summer like too, although nights are getting chilly up here with average temps now in the mid-40's.

What tells me the summer is kaput is the daylight, or lack there of. I have officially dragged out the headlamp and Elmer Fudd set-up.

The headlamp is too heavy and large for my head "neat" so I need a hat. This one is perfectly suited to get me through until I no longer need man made light to stagger around the barn at my chosen feeding time of 5:15 a.m.

This morning in the dark after dumping my heap of hay for every one's morning munch out I headed up the driveway on Bob. There is nothing like driving a tractor with no lights and only a headlamp. The deer we saw at the end were transfixed by the single light. I picked up four pairs of eyes scattered over both sides of the driveway.

Looked like bucks mostly, big, handsome, in velvet and starting to plump up their bodies and their coats. It's a slow ride up the 1/4 mile and back and just a nice little diversion to sit and think.

I love these subtle seasonal shifts, one foot in summer the other in fall, the dogwoods changing colors already. It's like we are all taking a big relaxing sigh before the industry of fall descends on us in a rush of wind, rain and falling leaves. The chipmunks and squirrels aren't stuffing their cheek pouches with abandon, yet. The young of all species haven't quite been weaned and kicked out to make their own way,

but it's coming. Spots are disappearing off fawns, udders running dry, the batch of wild babies are all becoming hard to distinguish from their parents they have grown so much. Do or die time is right around the corner and in the world of people, at least in this country, it is a noted day also. Not only the end of a season coming, but the end of an era with the passing of the old lion Ted Kennedy. Time reins us all in.