2011 Green Walnut Harvest dedicated to our husband, father & grandfather (Papa)

Our husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather, Paul Dennis Clary III,  passed away on March 17th, just 11 days after my last post.  We have been heartbroken since and miss him terribly.  It has been hard to keep up with emails, website and blog updates, ranch work and everyday life.  The weather was "off" too.  Rain, rain, snow, hail, sun?, more rain, more snow.  Cloudy skies and unsettled weather matched the way we've been feeling.  Just two weeks ago, we still weren't sure if we'd have a harvest this year.

But then the sun came out, the leaves grew and the tiny little walnut wannabees appeared to soak up the sun.  We began harvesting this weekend.

We dedicate this harvest to the man that loved this ranch so.  He's the reason we have this piece of heaven for if he hadn't loved it, farmed it with care and dedication, we wouldn't have it to love.  We think of him every time we look at the sky, the trees, the tractors, the barn, and his "new" tool benches.  What a great example to us all.  A stand up honest man, a good farmer,  a caring veterinarian, a loving husband, father and Papa.  Sure miss you, Dad.

More Southern Exposure

This winter, I've watched all of the third season of Northern Exposure. Remember? That 1990's television town; Cicely, Alaska. Joel, Maggie, Chris, Holling, Ruth Ann, Ed, Marilyn, all of them. I loved it then and it speaks to me still. In each episode Chris, the local radio station disc jockey/spiritual leader of Cicely connected life to literature, be it through Curious George or The Call of the Wild, finding meaning in the pages, translating life lessons. Everyday life in an isolated community didn't seem isolated at all. Instead, the very opposite.

I stopped in at Bocconato on Friday and visited Giovanni. Hearing about the hustle and bustle of their Monday nights reminded me of "The Brick". Okay, no beer, no darts, a more worldly menu, but a small community gathering place, ripe with laughter, stories, characters, and even singing at the corner table.

I wish that they had rebuilt our old logging town and the old Fair Play Hotel when it burned years ago. Maybe we will one day.