Soil

When Gil and I bought this land 24 years ago, it was abused land.  The ridge top had been corned and Atrezined to death and erosion had finished the job. On the spine of the ridge there was mostly rocky gravel, very little top soil.   24 years of burning and mowing and just letting the switch grass roots and all the other life forms melt into organic matter which holds and builds  soil, has done it's job.
We did a prairie burn a week or so ago.  There had been a rain 3 days before but conditions had been very dry.   And yet, three days after the rain, there were tire tracks with standing water in them on the spine of the ridge.  There was enough organic matter to hold the moisture, to be resilient even if this is a drought year.

I feel like I've grown that resilience too.  Something is shifting in me, not sure what, but I am feeling the depth of my top soil, and it is holding moisture.   Tonight is a magic moment, there's green stubble showing through the blackened field out the ridge surrounded by apple family in full blossom.  I'm drunk on birds and blossoms.  I'm planting my garden and the coffee grounds and manure/hay of the last few years has deliciously decomposed; it's going to be a good garden this year I hope.  And it looks like the Gil tree is making it; there are new leaves opening.
Resilience and the power of soil, composting life into life.