Yesterday was the full Strawberry Moon.
It was also the day my brother came by to help me in the garden. He came bearing gifts – a handful of strawberries from his own garden and a beautiful feather he had found.
We worked hard and I ended up feeling tired and wonderful – that delicious feeling of worthwhile labor done in sunshine in good company.
And tired as I was I kept thinking about a friend who spent a year or two as a seasonal farm worker, following the crops across country. She said picking strawberries was the hardest. I think about that every time I eat strawberries. I feel a little sadness mixed in with sweetness, a little discouragement about how unfairly we treat seasonal workers, a little dismayed that the huge agri-businesses make local organic farming and family farming such a difficult path to walk. Apparently strawberries carry some weight for me.
One of the things I’m doing this year is reading Mary Oliver’s early collection of poems Twelve Moons. In it she has poems dedicated to each of the full moons named after the Algonquin tradition, and so there is indeed one named Strawberry Moon. It’s a sad one about the tragedy of a woman’s life spent hidden in an attic.
I keep returning to this mix of sweet and sad associations with strawberries and think there’s a fullness about that – a wholeness just as in all of life.
On the sweet side, though I have a couple of strawberries to share. My strawberry fairy that lives in my kitchen:
And my strawberry salt and pepper shakers, part of my collection of vintage anthropomorphic fruits and veggies shakers:
Aren’t they adorable? I can’t help but smile when I see them.
Now tell me – did you celebrate the Strawberry Moon? Do you have a strange and delightful collection of something we should know about? Associate any particular poems with particular moons? Do tell – you know I love to hear.
Love those salt and pepper shakers. My mother had quite a collection of shakers as well. My favorite was a little toaster and the slices of bread sticking out were the shakers.
Oh how fun Cynthia – I would love those as well!
They are adorable 🙂 The Strawberries won’t be ready here until the end of June or beginning of July. I just did a small piece of magic on the Full Moon; a magic bookmark cut like a goddess symbol and dotted with three different oils for the purpose I need.
Strawberries are later developers here as well – the ones my brother shared were extra early bloomers. Meant to tide one over in anticipation until the regular season I think. 🙂 Love your bookmark magic!
Collections of Salt and Pepper shakers….gee…hadn’t thought about that in ages. I remember when that was all the rage….a lot of folks collected them, my mom included. Wish she still had them….would have been fun to see now!
Oh I hadn’t realized it had been a popular thing to do!
Ooh, I was a strawberry picker in the family garden when I was growing up. One for the pail, one for the mouth . . .luscious! Love your salt & pepper shakers & the idea that you have an anthropomorphic fruit & veggie salt shaker collection, makes me smile.
LOL – I totally subscribe to your method of harvesting. Yum!
My mom had a collection of salt and pepper shakers too! I used to pretend I worked in a bakery and would take poker chips and pretend they were donuts and then use the salt and pepper shakers to add “sprinkles” to the tops of the “donuts.” Such a simple life we lived back then! Strawberries…yummm
Poker chip donuts – how fun and totally creative Janet! And a truckload less calories than the real deal.
We have strawberries coming on our plants right now. And yes, this is very much a sweet/sad time for me as well.
Here’s to a wonderful crop of strawberries, and much more sweetness than sorrow in our lives.
I’m saddened, too, by the whole agribusiness thing. We do our best to support our local farms, shopping at the farmer’s market every week in the season. Strawberries are some of my favorites… though when the u-pick blueberries come on, I practically turn into one, as though Willy Wonka were picking right along with me.
LOL – now that’s a fabulous image I love imagining – you as a giant roly poly blueberry. How fun!
Hi Deborah – I’ve been waiting to comment – probably for the strawberry moon to reappear … lovely post .. and I’ve just checked in at the Farmers’ Almanac re the moon names etc …
I hope your garden is flourishing and you’ll be having a very happy 4th July … cheers Hilary
Thanks for the kind wishes Hilary. Wishing you a lovely week, and plenty of strawberries to enjoy. 🙂