A Good Tilled Earth
- Prof C
- Jun 1
- 4 min read
by Ashley
Summer time is alive and well, here in the Arctic circle. We've been out of school now for only a week, and because time moves very slowly once work is done, it feels like we've been out for a month. I don't mind that one bit. Our days have consisted of the sounds of all the songbirds, here for the summer, waking us from outside our bedroom. Our mornings are now comprised of un-rushed coffee conversations, with our window view overlooking the sparkling, flowing river, outlined with the green of freshly sprung leaves. The ground is alive, with the beginnings of my favorite harvests showing themselves to have survived another brutal winter. I am already impatient to gather all the various berries, herbs and flowers, whose locations are less of a mystery to me now, in my second summer here. I've been thrilled to see so many raspberry, nagoonberry, high bush cranberry and blueberry plants springing up so close to our house.
Our activities have largely consisted of bike riding, kite flying, snare line hiking, baseball, sitting around the outdoor fire pit roasting our dinner and/or marshmallows, walking the shoreline to search for this year's treasures, scouting out this year's fishing spots, and taking drives to find ducks, grouse, rabbits, and of course, so I can check off new species of waterfowl and songbirds on my perpetual birding checklist. Our days are productive, yet slow, and I love the pace. We, of course, are also still doing maintenance at the school, so we still have a lot of cleanup and installation projects to complete before August. Our main project last summer was the library. This year, it's converting a dilapidated building on the grounds into a greenhouse and a chicken coop for the school. We already have the future occupants growing fast, in our school gym. Meet our school's first flock:
The breeds we have include Black Star, Black Australorp, Gold Star, Rhode Island Red, Lavender Orpington, Easter Eggers, and Arctic Blue Eggers, twenty chickens in all. So far, they are all growing well, and the students were really excited for their arrival. We even had several village adults stop by to meet them. Our plan is to get a good program going to provide fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs, and eggs not only for our school, but also for the community as well. We are working on prototype systems that any villager can incorporate in their own home, to improve nutritional access year-round, while reducing costs. It's going to be quite a bit of work upfront, but we think it'll be worth it. Not to mention, I've really missed having our chickens, so it's good to have these little guys up here with us.
Since the last post was before school let out, I will say that we finished the year well, and I daresay, some of the students were more vocal about being reluctant to leave. There was a lot of relief in them hearing that Philip and I will once again be here for the next academic year. I've grown quite fond of my class, and reflecting back on this year, it really was a lot of fun. Exhausting, frustrating at times, overwhelming even, but fun. They're a good crew, and they learned so much this year. We finished our last week with Harry Potter activities, including a Sorting Ceremony, and wizarding duels. Here is my crew, complete with wands, lightning bolt scars, and feather quills:
I'll be teaching summer school again, starting in late June, and all eight of my students signed up. It's really more of an additional summer learning opportunity, rather than for credit recovery or promotion, so we're going to have some fun.
The Saturday after school let out, Jadyn and Emily flew to Texas for the first time since we moved. They had been planning their trip for awhile, and paid for their travel with their own money. They'll be there until the end of June, visiting with family and friends, and remembering what sweltering heat and intense UV radiation feels like. As for the rest of us, it's been REALLY quiet in the house. We've viewed this as a preview of what life is going to look like for us very soon. Emily is a senior now, and will be graduating next May. Then it will just be the two youngest here with Philip and I. As of right now, Avery still wants to graduate from here, so our plans have us here another 4-5 years, depending on whether or not she wants to graduate early. It's still weird though, transitioning into the next phase of life with grown children. As always, I don't feel old enough.
But our time here still feels right. I have no idea what sort of impact we'll have had when our time here is done, and we'll never know what would've happened had we stayed in Texas. I do know that I've learned so much here in such a short time. I feel like I'm finally coming out of the fog I was in, with Mom being sick for so long, and then passing away. I didn't fully realize just how much that all impacted my functionality. There was way too much energy being spent internally, with a lot of things being worked out in my head. Philip maintains that a change of scenery was an important piece in allowing me to break out of all that, and perhaps he's right. Being here, so far removed from anything I've ever known, has allowed me to forge and craft in the present, paying attention to the details about myself and others, that I'd missed for so long. Just in time, I'd say, before the kids are all off on their own and I get too old.
Our life in photos for May
Around the house, Em's birthday, Mother's Day:
The evolution of the Yukon River breakup: The river actually broke up for us here on the exact same day it did last year, May 9. It started as a major crack of two ice sheets, and then floated out fairly quickly. Over the next week, we had fun sitting in the backyard, watching the miniature icebergs crash into each other and break apart. We also enjoyed the large ice remnants that were left on the shoreline for awhile.
As always, thanks for reading!
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