The last two early mornings I\u2019ve gone out to the firepit just before dawn and built a small fire in the chimenea, watching it burn down while I ponder the changing of the seasons.\u00a0 I love to wander around in the yard, quietly collecting small twigs for kindling for the next fire and it was easy this morning under last night\u2019s full moon.\u00a0 I could see the tiny twigs glistening white against the brown leaf mulch garden floor.\u00a0 There is plenty of oak and pine branch deadfall for firewood and sometimes I use dried pine needles and palmetto fronds as starters.\u00a0 Today I began clearing the firepit area, cutting back the dead palmetto fronds and dead grapevine.\u00a0 Last winter, I made an archway out of bamboo and grapevines and I took that down to accomodate the bay tree, which had grown so much bigger. I always cut some bay and camphor branches to dry for the next fire, I love the smell of them when they release their scent in the flame.\u00a0 I began cutting the palmettos back away from the trail in the west woods.\u00a0 I\u2019d let them grow all year long and it was time.\u00a0 I only cut the main trail today.\u00a0 Tomorrow I\u2019ll pick up all the cut fronds and decide where the side trails should be.\u00a0 I look to see where the animals have been walking, because I want to stay off their space, and I have two big gopher tortoise burrows I don\u2019t want to disturb.\u00a0 They live here, too.<\/p>\n
Related:\u00a0Camping In My Woods Defrags My Stress\u00a0<\/u><\/a><\/u>
\nA New Crop Of Baby Hawks and the Bonfire Metaphor<\/u><\/a><\/u><\/p>\n