Inside the four major seasons of the year lie clusters of hidden, parallel, and interlocking seasons that measure and define a WHOLE universe inside of ordinary time.
The final floral markers of the sun’s residence in Gemini gather fragments of Late Spring and Early Summer THAT foretell Deep Summer and its sign of Cancer. Wild orange day lilies are the crown of June, and they are easy transitions to the tea roses and the MULTI-COLORED day lilies that bloom AFTER all the trees have grown their leaves.
Queen Anne’s lace and black-eyed Susans foretell THE OPENING OF milkweed for the sluggish, sensual milkweed beetles of July. Lizard’s tail dips to the rivers and ponds. The compass PLANTS follow the sun and spread their blossoms above the nettles.
Strawberry season wanes, but mulberries and black raspberries are sweet and warm under the heat of Deep Summer's Dog Star.
Blackberries have set fruit. THEY prophesy August's peaches and apples and pears.
And all these seasons and so many others are glimpses of hidden parallel worlds that not only exist inside the broad field of summer, but also inside the universe of daily routine of work and relationships, family and home.
This is Bill Felker with Poor Will’s Almanack. I’ll be back again next week with notes for the last week of Early Summer. In the meantime, step out of your regular universe into the sweet zones just on the other side of your routine.
