Country Roads

Monday was one of those beautiful fall days in the country. These kinds of days are becoming rare so we best enjoy them while they last. The recent freeze has caused leaves to fall from most of the trees. But some leaves are being stubborn, and just like me, don’t want to see fall come to an end. Today is one of those blessed times that rewards those who are rural dwellers.

As I’ve shared before, there are pluses and minuses for living in the wide open spaces. Living almost 20 miles from a grocery store can be challenging but we learn when a trip to town is called for, a list is made for needed shopping items and heaven forgive a person if when reaching town, the list got left at home. Another hard time for a country cook is while making a recipe and the item called for in the recipe is missing on the shelf. There can’t be a quick run to the store to pick it up so either the cook comes up with a different recipe or starts calling a neighbor to see if the needed item is on her shelf. There is no right next door neighbor to have coffee with, and the nearest coffee shop is more than 20 miles away, so you become content with enjoying your cup of coffee seated on a window seat overlooking the colorful fields, or seated at the patio table watching the cattle in a nearby lot. Now maybe that situation could be considered a plus, come to think about it. Yet, another challenging is dining out. Since the nearest place to dine out is only open on certain evenings, making plans to eat out otherwise means a special trip 20 some miles away.

Being quarantined for a few days made me again appreciate living the rural life style. There was a lot of peace and quiet to enjoy except for the robo calls that came on the phone now and then. Reading and researching were done without interruptions. There was a lot to view out my windows, including watching the field across the roadway. The tall feed was being cut and fed into machines making ensilage for the neighbor’s cattle. Trucks went back and forth from the field to the farmstead hauling the cut feed. Though fall harvesting is mostly done, there are still some cutting milo and corn, so combines, tractors pulling carts and trucks kept the roadways busy.

Then came a beautiful day that drew me outdoors, and without worrying if I would come in contact with others, I decided to take a walk down to the creek. There were birds flying overhead enjoying the day. A rustle in the dried brush made me stop to see a rabbit quickly run from place to place. Some of the trees along the creek still displayed their colorful leaves. Some running water was still flowing in the creek and could be heard. These times are enjoyed. Yes, these are some of the many pluses of living on a farm.