One of the first pieces of poetry my children are required to memorize is M.A. Stodart’s “One Thing At A Time”:
Work while you work; play while you play.
That is the way to be cheerful all day.
All that you do, do with your might.
Things done by halves are never done right.
One thing each time and that done well,
is a very good rule as many can tell.
Moments are useless trifled away; so
work while you work and play while you play.~M.A. Stodart
I favor it because it is short, it has a simple rhyme scheme, and, most of all, because it is useful. I cannot tell you how many times I have smiled at a child with a wandering eye and whispered, sing-sing, “Work while you work…” only to have him or her sigh deeply and respond, “play while you play.” It is less reproach than reminder: work hard here and now, and there will be time to play hard as well.
So it was this weekend, when spring made her first showing at Floating Axe Farm.
Despite a round of sniffles and coughs, we managed to use our time of quarantine from the general public wisely. Starts went into a simple, DIY cold frame, and early peas made their way into the ultra-rich soil of our no till garden. Fruit trees were planted, blueberry bushes mulched, and a nasty overgrown ivy met with a hedge trimmer. By mid-morning, we were sweaty and dirty and had peeled off our jackets. There were a hundred little odds and ends to do as we usher winter and dormancy out the back door of our land and our hearts.
And then, of course, we could play.
(As an aside, very rarely do I see my family assembled and think, “So many people!” But this particular afternoon, as I walked up from inspecting new Honeycrisp apples that had just gone into the ground, I saw everyone preparing to fly kites and was in awe of the sheer number of bodies! Also, for the sharp-eyed among you, yes, John Mark is wearing a cast on his right leg. That white plastic thing you see is a trash bag for waterproofing and keeping it clean!)
There was joy and laughter and appreciation for the sun and respite. We were able to eat our first full meal of 2019 outside, on our picnic table. As far as spring days goes, it was nearly perfect: productive, yet playful. There are many more days of work still ahead as we bring to fruition our hopes and dreams for this place… but there will be many more days of play, as well.