Fall's Bounty

I've always had a hard time deciding which is my favorite season. Is it spring, when the earth wakes up and showers us with color, or is it fall, when she grows tired and readies herself for bed? I am ready for spring; I get tired of the grayness of winter, but I'm also ready for fall since I also get tired of the South's heat and humidity.

Both spring and fall offer a symphony of colors, but fall is the time for pecans!

The air cools and I start to look at my pecan trees. Will it be a good harvest year? Was there enough rain and sunshine this year? This summer my favorite pecan tree was destroyed in a summer storm (their branches are really weak!), and I wondered where I would find another favorite. I didn't have to look far. Up the pathway stands two wonderful trees that I have overlooked for the past nine years. I don't know why...I walk by that section quite often. But one day, as I was waiting for my husband to come get me so we could go scout other locations, I looked on the ground and spied clumps of pecans, just waiting to be picked!

Now that the leaves have blanketed the ground, finding them reminds me of egg hunts during Easter. Only now I have slide my feet along, moving the leaves as I go.

Seventy-three pounds later, my new-found favorites are still producing!
I can't wait to toast some!