The Fields of My Youth

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Do you ever go back sometimes to visit the house where you grew up? I love the house, forests and fields where I spent my childhood. Our house was originally part of a historical settlement in the foothills of the Olympic Mountains, built by families from Oklahoma displaced by the dust bowl. It's still labeled on maps as "Little Oklahoma". On a trip back to my home ground with my children, we stopped by the old house. My parents don't live there anymore, but the owners are family friends, and welcomed us for a tour. I was delighted and amazed at all of their homesteading endeavors! Gardens, orchards, berries, bees, new split rail cedar fences, and a hidden throne carved out of an old cedar stump in the forest were just a few of the wonderful goings-on around there. They were happy to show us their beehives and even let the kids hold a honeycombed tray buzzing with bees. Here's a little photographic tour.

 My brother and I spent many a rainy day in this old barn, playing in the piles of hay bales and climbing up into the hayloft full of golden straw.

 

The stained glass window in our old chicken coop, made by my mother. That was one fancy chicken coop. I played in there a lot too.

 

The field always bloomed in daisies all summer long.

 

Ox-eye daisy up close

 

 

Mr. Waltenburg's bees

 

 

Making honey from the neighbor's lavender field

 

 

The Olympic Mountains

As I watched the moon rise over the mountains I know so well, I felt a deep gratitude for having grown up in such a magical place. From what I hear, the place was rough when my parents bought it, but with plenty of hard work and sweat, they created a wonderful home in the foothills. We had cows, chickens and a garden, and my brother and I spent countless hours running about and playing in the woods and the creek bottom. There were trees to climb and a barn to play in on rainy days. I always aspire to give my own children such a childhood. From time to time I go back and visit that place in my mind, and imagine what it would be like to live there still, so it brought me a lot of joy to see the land being put to such good use!