Big changes in Homestead Change! September Milestones

If you want something, strengthen this desire and act. There is no time to waste. The change begins today, now, with the smallest things.

At least for now, for me taking small steps is over. This time I went to Poland knowing that from the very beginning I would have my hands full and that what we managed to do would be a big step forward. I couldn't wait!

And so it happened. Again, I didn't even have time to go for a walk in the nearby forests, and my muscles are still reminding me of their existence. I am happy.

Siedlisko Zmiana (Homestead Change) gained a log cabin - a bit of a utility building, a bit of a base camp, a shelter from the rain and a place where you can drink your coffee in decent conditions. It will be especially useful now, when colder and rainier days are so close. Eating a soggy sandwich while hunched over from the rain and sipping coffee from a cup tightly held in cold-stiffened hands is not necessarily the height of dreams. And there is still so much to do!

I don't have a sewage system yet, due to some complications with the road and permits for the necessary works I will have to wait a bit, but I rented a portable toilet, which worked out quite well as a temporary solution. Blue, it an eye-catcher against the background of the forest, which was not necessarily my wish, but is practical and provides at least a semblance of civilization. Maybe next year I will build some housing to hide it a bit, and when the right time comes, there will be sewage. Not everything has to be perfect right away, and the portaloo visible from afar has become the butt of our inner jokes, our blue lighthouse indicating the direction from afar 😊

But I already have water on the plot and this is another big step that makes so much possible! I was waiting so long for the moment when I could start establishing an orchard, planting and sowing the first plants and developing at least a part of this empty, quite desert space.

The summer was exceptionally hot and there was no point in trying too much, because the poor plants and seeds would be burned almost immediately. We had to wait patiently, but finally the long-awaited September has come!

We bought and planted over 30 plants, I dug up part of the area and sowed grass with microclover (more drought-resistant and able to cope in sandy soils), and now it's time for tulip bulbs, crocuses and snowdrops, which I want to plant in the ground so that they bloom in spring. Next year it will be a different area!

There will be apple trees, plum trees, cherries, red and black currants, strawberries and blueberries, purple lilacs, white roses and blue wisteria climbing up the wooden columns of the terrace... There will be a fragrant linden tree, hazelnuts, beautifully coloured Japanese maples and a funny twisted Wiggerly Willow...

I had all this in my head for a long time and when the right time came, I knew exactly what I wanted and where. That is why, despite minor setbacks and weather whims, I managed to do so much in less than two weeks. Maybe you can't see it yet, because the plants are young and the sprouts haven't sprouted yet, but it's only a matter of time. I can see it all in my head, and this image constantly moves me and warms me from the inside. It doesn't matter that autumn is coming, and then winter. Such a calmer period will be very useful. Let everything settle down, take root, so that I can start with new energy next year.

And I also have something to do and think about here, in Ireland. Here is my life and I want to feel alive. And this requires concentration, paying attention to how and what I do, how I spend my time, how I feel. Creating opportunities and enjoying small pleasures, doing and appreciating important work, resting... I am currently in a place in my life where I like to think about the coming autumn and winter, about misty mornings and rainy walks with the dog. I know it will be cold and gloomy, and our world will continue to be shaken by problems, but I did everything in my power to gather positive feelings, memories and further beautiful plans, from which I will draw during this grey period. I also managed, despite the limitations of my apartment, to create a stock of preserves that are pleasing to the eye and palate - pickled cucumbers, tomato salsa, zucchini and apple chutney and several large bottles of currant and apple juices. Just like my memories, they are waiting for their time.

It's good, and it will be beautiful 😊

See for yourself, I collected some snippets from my September journey: