Compass Points
on the road to Empire
west of Traverse bay
after you have climbed the ridge
of the farm with twin silos
with a fine transverse
conveyor at their very tops,
there is a bend in the road-
quickly discover
a piece of land trianglular -
wedge of a field
with a loom-like weave,
and shag tapestry of hops.
Romeo’s festival
of peaches ended
Sunday, and blueberries are scarce,
corn’s getting’ starchy…
swedes and white turnips
are the end of season crops.
Halloween coming,
followed by All Saints,
(it's Pumpkin Preservation Day!)
then thanks-feast of roots and gourds,
until Christmas time,
where annual full compass stops.
--
notes
Late getting this up; was at my mother's over Labor Day until Thursday... and no internet.
"swedes" - yellow turnips, rutabaga
"Empire" - Empire, Michigan
"Traverse Bay" - Grand Traverse Bay by Traverse City, Michigan
I forget which highway runs to Empire... I think it's 27 or 29 or something like that. There is a farm stand across the street from the farm with two silos and a cover connecting them, which I assume is a conveyor that can be switched from one silo to the other, as needed.
There is a hops farm. They have nets raised between posts, upon which the hops grow like vines.
A meditation on farming and the year past, started by remembering the hops being grown along the road to Empire, Michigan. As summer passes, we have blueberries this year on July 16, then the corn came in, then the peaches in Romeo, Michigan and the festival was September 1.
Then we go through the harvest time to the later feasts and stop end of year.
