ELDERBERRY FEST 2017 - PART 1

The barn is even older than the house

I walked into our bedroom at 9:30 Friday night (Oct. 13) and was startled to see a bright red spot on the northern horizon, including flashes and flares. I called to daughter Hallie and we turned off lights and watched the display until it disappeared behind cloud cover five minutes later. I could only assume we were seeing Northern Lights.

The old-time family here spent many an evening watching the night sky, and they did enjoy Northern Lights. In times like this I feel a strong connection to them in this place. In fact, even in the valley in which I grew up (Orofino), my dad would occasionally go out to watch the night sky. Sometimes he could see Northern Lights, sometimes not. Brother Chuck related that in his youth he would lie out on the sidewalk of our Orofino home to view the northern sky and watch the play of lights.

Kathy with Hallie's fabric

Mike wasn’t there Friday night, but Saturday evening we saw the same phenomenon and it lasted longer. He was underwhelmed and questioned that we were actually seeing Northern Lights. But I found it convincing that the display was visible in the same place two nights in a row – and then three.

Hallie pins lining to fabric

We had a successful Elderberry Fest, but our first focus was to make two sets of café curtains for Hallie’s newly remodeled bathroom in the little Tudor. This was perhaps as important as making the jelly, and because we enjoyed making the curtains, we were slow. She and Nick had both chosen fabric from the 1930’s reproduction designs at Jo-Ann. The bathroom is monochromatic in black and white tile, so Hallie’s two-tone pink flowers on white with black stems will add a splash of color. Nick’s choice was more subdued and relates well to the tile concept.

Hallie's cafe curtains

Nick's choice on left; Hallie's on right

Mike and Bess returned to town Friday for opening pheasant season on Saturday (the 14^th) and also to take in the long-anticipated grand opening of Harbor Freight in Lewiston. He would never leave the farm while Hallie was visiting unless it was truly important, you know. And it worked out fine because Hallie and I were occupied with the curtains.

Ol’ Nell was left behind with Hallie and me. I thought she would love having Hallie all to herself, but in fact, I think she moped over being left behind. Following our afternoon walk, she stared out the dining room window for an hour. And as I attempted to let her out at bedtime, she balked. We stood there with the door open for a full minute and finally concluded she wasn’t going out. When I closed the door, she hurried back to her pillow on the living room floor.

This small pine is decked out for Christmas

And Hallie helped me accomplish something I’ve wanted to do for several years – stringing solar Christmas lights on a pine tree near the pond. Though I've had this planned, it just hasn’t worked out – too difficult, too cold, too much snow, etc. So, this year we have it done early. Hallie carried a step ladder to the tree and placed the lights while I unraveled the string. When nightfall arrived, the lights began to twinkle, and we stood and laughed at them. A nice memory! 

Next up: Making elderberry jelly. KW