The trouble with November is not that it is chock-full of dreary and dark days, but that it is heading in the wrong direction. In January, where the days are equally short-lived, we're hoping for snow and eyeing perennial catalogues for spring planting. We're in an upswing! In November, each day grows shorter and there's rarely snow on the ground. Which perhaps is a good thing because snow is fun for about three months, and after that you are ready to move on! If it starts in November, you're done with it before it is done with you.
Nonetheless, this year, the slide toward cold, dark and dreary hasn't yet started. It will, in a day or two, but we've been given a whole week of lovely days to make up for what's to come. I mean, I've always said that November is the toughest month to get through in Wisconsin. This year it has yet to turn mean and nasty.
Still, Ed and I don't do much outside. I have a stack of catch up chores and Ed has a morning long Zoom meeting. Indeed, I don't even want to wait for him for breakfast. I bake up some muffins and eat alone.
In the afternoon, I pick up Snowdrop at school.
Once again, I try to keep her outside as long as I can. I'm fighting an uphill battle with a girl who has already had plenty of time on the school playground. Still, the day is so pretty... The farmette is so pretty...
It's dark by the time I drive her home to her brothers.
Amazing how quickly a day goes by when daylight hours are short-lived. But, I come from northern Europe, where today the sun rose at 6:48 and set at 3:51. That's a whole lot worse than Madison's 6:44 and 4:39. And I'm not even going to bother giving you the times for Iceland, or Norway! It's easy to be bothered by November's peculiarities until you remind yourself that however irksome those are in your neck of the woods, someone else has it a whole lot worse, and complains about it a whole lot less.
(At home again, I have a chance to tell Primrose how very sorry I am that she was feeling under the weather this past weekend...)
Happy kids! They never care which month we're in and how short the days are. It's past sunset? Let's look at the moon shape and find the first star! Yep, they know where they can find the essential elements of a good day. A pile of golden leaves, a crescent moon, and maybe mac and cheese for dinner... That's all it takes.
