July

Steamy July has arrived on my hilltop home.  And with it the smells and sounds of summer come rolling up the valley in a cloud of green leaves, swaying grass, and bird song at break of day.

My morning walk is earlier now.  Cool breezes make the climb up and down the hill easier.  Shadows shield the climbing vines growing daily as they cover last fall's leaves with velvet tendrils.  A sunbeam spotlights the fresh face of a black-eyed  Susan, nodding her head in the early morning light.

I hear the call of the morning meadow lark.  Nesting now and feeding their young they are busy catching food, keeping a wary eye out for danger with every move they make.

In the distance a tractor begins the day with a loud and steady rumble.  Now is the season for work and very little play.  The days are long and full of things to do.  Bring in the bounty of the garden.  Tastes of homegrown food, fresh to the table whet my appetite for more and more and more of Nature's bounty.

How wonderful you are July.

And here in the blessed cool before the heat of the new day, I smile, looking forward to another summer day.