The Deer Hunter enjoying the shade
The older I get the more I appreciate shade. Thankfully I live in a mountain holler that has many trees to offer their canopy of coolness on hot days, and since I live on the north side of the mountain the sun isn’t quite as hot as it is on down through the settlement. Yet it is hot enough to long for the coolness found under the trees or the front porch.
Saturday we put in the rest of our garden and planted Granny’s. The smallness of Granny’s plot is why we were able to do it all in one long tiring day. Chatter pitching in also ensured we got what needed to be done accomplished.
I believe the high for the day was in the low 80s. Manual labor in that sort of heat can quickly having me longing for shade.
We saved the planting of Granny’s beans, tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers till the end of the day. Our little crew was dragging by the time we completed her garden. I told The Deer Hunter and Chatter before we carried everything back up the hill to home I had to sit for a few minutes in the shade.
As we sat just feet away from the shady laurel patch I played in as a girl and surveyed our hard work I thought about how glorious shade is. I could feel the protection from the burning sun the over hanging trees offered our arms and faces and the comfort of the even cooler air seeping out from the thick laurels.
Last night’s video: Catching up on the Porch in Appalachia.
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Thanks for sharing this post Miss Tipper, yes mam I’ve always enjoyed sittin in the shade under a big oak or any tree as far as that goes
But I’m with you the older I get the more I’m a huntin a nice shady spot to relax and cool down. Like this past week Robbie Lynn & I were continuing to plant our gardens & fruit trees and it was in the upper 90’s here in South Carolina and those frequent breaks in the shade underneath the precious trees in our yard while drinking some nice cool water was most likely the only reason we were able to finish the job. Shade trees are priceless, I wish everyone realized this like all of our family does here on The Blind Pig. GOD BLESS YOU ALL.
Tipper, I think a lot of people don’t realize just how valuable trees are, for shade especially. We lost our place after my husband became disabled in the military. But before losing it we put a lot of hard work into it. It had no grass and only one tree when we first moved there so we literally had to start from scratch. All the trees had just started getting big when we lost it almost eleven years ago. I absolutely love trees and the shade that they provide! 🙂
Tipper, I was also wondering if anyone has heard from Awgriff? I haven’t seen him comment on anything in a while and I’m hoping he’s okay. I enjoy reading the comments from different people every day, and he’s from eastern Kentucky like myself.
Regina-I have not heard from him. I’ll reach out and see if I can find out how he is 🙂
And yet another interesting narration…God Bless
I know your mama really appreciated all that work you did. You all understand the blessings that each person brings to the table.❤️✝️
Thank you for that blog on shade. When I retired here in North Texas back about 20 years ago, I bought a piece of land that had been a cattle pasture. There was one lonely tree in the middle of the 10 acres that looked like it was the only gathering place for a few cows looking for shade on a hot day. Over these years I have been planting 5 trees a year to try to get some place for the birds to land and to provide a shade spot for me when I am outside working. Like most Texas cow pastures there are mature trees along the fence line which can be harvested for firewood, but those don’t provide shade for a working person on a hot day. Most of the trees that I planted or transplanted were baby trees that I found growing along the fence line. Because of the Summer heat it is better to try to plant native trees that can grow in this soil such as Live Oak and Shumard Oak. I grew most of my Shumard Oak trees from acorns that I gathered from a tree in a nearby town. I use to look at these small trees struggling to grow and thought that I would never see the day when I could stand under one for a little shade. Now I have around 30 trees in different stages of grown and fortunately for me at age 83 I am able to sit under several of them on a hot day and enjoy shade. I have noticed that years ago I could get me a jug of water and work outside all day, but now I am lucky if I can work an hour or two before I start looking for one of those shade trees.
On a hot, humid day, a shady spot can certainly revive a person. I loved my Grandparents’ old wrap-a-round porch. A huge water oak in front of it gave some shade and it seems there was always a gentle breeze blowing across the front. As a child I loved sitting there waving to cars out on the main road as people were going into town or coming out of town. Not as much traffic back in the 50’s. Seems like everybody had a front porch with a swing back then in NE MS:)
Thanks for the update on Katie too as somehow I thought she was back from her trip. I think I’ve mentioned before how my husband and I loved history and one year we followed the Lewis & Clark trail out to Oregon. Absolutely beautiful landscapes. You encouraged her to enjoy the view and not get wrapped up in picture taking. Wise advice – to stand, be still and mentally take in the view to remember. Believe me, many years later she will be able to recall that beautiful picture in her mind.
I love shade trees, and my favorite thing is to have a chair at ready to escape to when the sun is shining hot. Nothing better than 4 seasons in the mountains, because summer is filled with many cool breezes. The Lord really knew what he was doing, because the best air conditioner cannot compare to sitting in a chair under a tree with a cool breeze blowing. Oh, don’t forget the iced tea!
Living in Deep East Texas during the summer months, you rarely can find a cool spot even in the shade! However, we are blessed every so often with a gentle breeze in the last hour before dark, and sitting in the shade at that time is a glorious moment that I look forward to every summer evening!
I recall plainly as a child retrieving a blanket and heading underneath a tree to sleep or rest from the heat. All my life I’ve been a tree hugger ( literally.) I love to hear the breeze rustling through the trees saying “Jesus is coming.” Maybe you can hear it too sometime. The only thing missing was a big glass of cold spring water… I know granny is tickled pink with her little garden… she’s the sweetest little lady and I’m so glad she is loved, looked after and adored by you all…your cup runneth over with love! BTW I got an Olympian Fig tree which is coming right along… I’m excited about it as I’ve never had one…
I feel so incredibly blessed to live where there is an abundance of large trees. My yard has some large. beautiful trees and both of my porches stay shaded all day. Your post reminded me to thank God for a mercy that I sometimes forget about. A day trip to Asheville or some city has me quickly longing for my back porch.
I know how you feel. Last several days I got hammered by the sun out in the garden. Walking over in the shade was such a big relief, especially so because it has been breezy. We have a lot of trees and I have to pay the dues of dealing with sticks and leaves but it is worth it.
My Grandma had black locust yard trees. They seem to have been a popular choice way back when. They make a high, light shade and the little leaflets give little or no trouble about having to be raked or blown off the grass. I think maybe they fell out of favor because of locusts borer insects. I once saw some locusts out West that had never had the borers and they looked like a different tree.
I think that glorious shade you describe is what once made the spring house a place to go and do ‘settin down’ work. We are out of touch with it now in large measure but ‘huntin a shade’ used to be just one of many ways to live with nature and conserve strength. If you got s bunch of ‘old timers’ (born and grew up without air conditioning) together and asked, “What makes the best shade?” you’d probably start a real interesting discussion.
Unfortunately the older you get the more you will search for the shade to sit under or just to sit. I didn’t understand how my mother felt as she aged. Now I do.
I think air conditioning has spoiled us now. I think back to my childhood when there was no air conditioning in the home, stores, church, cars or manufacturing plants. It was such a blessing to set in the shade even if was only for a few minutes. I think too of working in the fields and other outside jobs when there was no shade to be found. It would be so hot in the south (mid 90’s and high humidity) and you would look up and see those heat monkeys dancing in front of you. I heard it said in times like this you would be grateful for the little bit of shade a buzzard flying over would give you.
Yes I enjoy getting in the shade, Monday of this week while cutting grass in middle of the day a friend stopped by and we got in the shade under a big oak tree and talked for a while. Like it has bee said on here before, when you finish a job it makes you feel good to rest and look back and see what you have accomplished.
And how refreshing is a cool breeze that seems to come from nowhere, just when it’s seems that we’ll melt. How precious was shade and breezes in those days before air conditioning.
Y’all are a blessing to your elder family members. That’s how God created us to live. Thank you for working so hard to help Granny.
I kin you on the shade. The heat is intolerable even in the 80’s some days. Shade and lots of water get me through it. I really enjoyed your video of your front porch catch-up time. I miss my granny’s front porch swing. Lots of good times were had on that front porch from shelling peas to snapping beans.
I am so thankful that God gave us trees to provide shade! And He also gave us shade loving plants in addition to sun loving ones so we can have diversity in the garden. By the way, today is World Bee Day so everyone go out and support your local beekeeper 🙂
Miss Cindy said it so well, I’ll just be total agreement with her.
A big resounding YES to Miss Cindy on it being worth all the work from us, too! We love our garden and our vegetables and just getting in the dirt. It is very calming and settling and so peaceful, once you rest a bit….hahaha. Tipper, thanks for giving us a few minutes every day to cherish the important things and the memories you bring to us.
Heartwarming comforts of home, well said! It is very satisfying when the job is done. That’s a lot of work for you three who work full time besides the gardening and of course the planting is just the beginning. Is it worth all the work….I can hear a resounding “yes!” all the way over to my house! This is what they call a labor of love!