All Things Harvest BLOG - Page 6 of 8

Winter Season–Developing a Harvest Strategy

Winter Season–Developing a Harvest Strategy

Winter is the time to live off the harvest of the previous season. It is also the time to develop a strategy for the next harvest season. Even when the fields are covered in a blanket of snow the farmer is planning the harvest. This can make the difference between a successful harvest that can sustain you or a failed harvest that leaves you without proper sustenance. Winter is the time to develop a harvest strategy. It is the time for planning the next harvest.

Even when the fields are covered in a blanket of snow the farmer is planning the harvest.

Looking ahead brings life and meaning to the season of winter. It cultivates hope and anticipation for all the blessings that the harvest can bring. Without developing a strategy, however, the harvest is in danger long before the planting is to begin. Knowing what seeds need to be planted in order to grow the crop that will yield the desired harvest is essential.

Your life is a farm that has various fields within which you can grow a successful harvest. Just as the fields on a farm require planting with certain seeds in order to reap a specific harvest, the different areas of your life require the same. It is essential that the farmer knows what he wants to harvest in order to do so. It is essential that you know what you want to harvest in order to reach your destination. If you don’t know the crop that you want planted in a field, how can you expect it to grow? Planning can bring clarification.

The farmer takes time to plan the crops he will be planting for the upcoming harvest season. He is intentional about what he plants. He plans the sowing of his crops so that he can receive the harvest he desires. Just as the farmer plans his harvest, you too need to take time to plan the harvests you want to see in your life. Determining the goals you want to see accomplished will help you to determine the seeds you need to plant to receive the desired harvest. You need to plan the harvest you want to see in your life.

Considering the various fields within each of the areas you want to see a harvest in your life can help you determine what seeds need planting and what fields need to be put aside for another season.

Fields of Faith
Fields of Family
Fields of Home
Fields of Health
Fields of Business/Career
Fields of Finances
Fields of Friends
Fields of Leisure
Fields of Self Development

Start planning your harvest by asking yourself some basic questions:

What fields need cultivating?
What shall the harvest of these fields be?

Once you know the fields you want to cultivate, you will know what to plant in those fields. You may discover that there are fields that need to be put aside this year. When a field is put aside and left unsown it is considered to lie fallow.

Are there fields that need to lay fallow this year?
Are there fallow fields that need to be reclaimed this year?

Just as a farm has different fields that can yield a harvest depending upon what is planted within, your life has different fields that yield a harvest depending upon what you plant and cultivate.

What do you plan to harvest this year?

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

~An Old Irish Blessing

Marian (McCoy) Boveri

Winter Season–Living Off the Harvest

Winter Season–Living Off the Harvest

Fall harvest celebrations were traditionally held to express thanksgiving for the abundance of plenty that could be stored up and lived on during the scarcity of the cold and dark winter. Historically winter’s survival was dependent upon the harvest. A poor or lost harvest meant certain desperation as concern for survival was indeed a real and pressing problem.

Winter’s Harvest in the Barn

Winter is a time for living off of the harvest. In modern life, full dependence upon what can be harvested and stored is uncommon as food is pretty much accessible year-round. If you look at the harvest as the results you have in the various aspects or fields of your life; however, the harvest does indeed once again become important to store up in order to survive life’s winter seasons.

What do you do if you find that your time of plenty was not so plentiful? How do you live off the harvest when all you can see are lost hopes and dreams? What do you do when your daily life has become a struggle just to survive?

Being caught up in the need to survive–even on an emotional level–can lead you to living in a suspended “crisis mode” known as “fight-or-flight”. This primitive protective mechanism was important when confronted with a saber tooth tiger that required actual physical activity in order to survive. However, today’s saber tooth tigers and failed harvests are oftentimes psychological stressors such as missing a deadline, traffic delays, financial issues, and such that do not require actual physical activity to escape immediate danger. Nevertheless, the same “crisis mode” of “fight-or-flight” gets activated.

What you may not realize is that constant stress can cause you to actually get stuck in this “crisis mode” and start living everyday in mere survival. When you get stuck in living in survival your decisions become impacted negatively. Your ability to cultivate the seeds needed to have a good harvest is inhibited. In essence, you get stuck living in the winter with no harvest stored in the barn to sustain you. Excessive stress and a life lived with continual short-term emergencies lead to becoming overwhelmed.

So how do you change out of this “survival mode” and back into cultivating positive attitudes and beliefs? How do you move away from focusing on just the short-term survival and start focusing on long-term results?

Increase your physical activity. On the surface you may think, “How does exercise change my world?” It gives your body a chance to engage in the “fight-or-flight” and burn off all the excess stress hormones. This will lead to a clearer mind and more introspective thinking. Even 10 minutes of activity will help regain clarity.
Change your environment. What you surround yourself with will impact your stress level. Changing your physical environment to reflect a more peaceful reality is essential. Sometimes this may be getting out of toxic relationship or leaving a stress-filled job. Changing your spiritual environment by seeking an understanding of your God-given purpose and direction will change your focus from just surviving to long-term thriving. Spending time in prayer will help to bring peace and clarity. Resolving to release negative feelings of worthlessness, shame, and guilt will help to build a more positive environment.
Change your perceptions. One of the easiest and effective ways to change your perceptions is to use affirmations. Affirmations have the ability to change your beliefs through continuous repetition by replacing the negative thoughts with more positive ones. Focusing on affirmations can also help to quiet the mind which is key to moving beyond the anxiety and fears into a place of clearer understanding, truth, and love.

What ways will you start storing your harvests in order to survive the winters of your life?

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

~ An Old Irish Blessing

Marian (McCoy) Boveri

New Year’s Traditions: Create a Harvest of New Year’s Resolutions

New Year’s Traditions: Create a Harvest of New Year’s Resolutions

The end of the year brings with it the tradition of reflecting upon the previous year and making resolutions for the New Year. Resolutions are made based on the outcomes you would like to see in your life in the upcoming year. These resolutions essentially define the harvests you would like to see in the fields of your life.

This year I will…

New Year’s resolutions often get a bad rap because it would appear that many people tend to forget about them just a few weeks into the year. They oftentimes end up like many dreams in life—never getting off the ground or coming to fruition. If you truly examine what “resolution” means you will discover that by definition it is the “act of finding an answer or solution to a conflict, problem, etc.: the act of resolving something”. [1] What happens with a lot of resolutions is that people resolve to do something but fail to “find an answer or solution” [2] to achieving that very thing.

In other words resolutions often fail because solutions are not found to achieve them. If you look at resolutions as harvests that you want to see in your life, you see that the resolutions themselves define the fields you want to yield a harvest in. And as you well know—the crop that is harvested is determined by the seeds that are planted. Just like the harvest, resolutions need care and tending in order to grow. A good and abundant harvest requires a lot of hard work to cultivate the seeds that are planted. But first the seeds have to be planted!

So how do you do things differently this year? How do you come to the end of 2015 and celebrate an abundant harvest?

The key is to actually put the work into our resolutions.
Find the answer on how to bring about the result.
Plant seeds of doing in order to reap the harvest.
Turn the resolution into a goal with specific measurable results–make it S.M.A.R.T.
Determine the time in which the resolution comes to harvest.

How to harvest a S.M.A.R.T. goal:

Specific–What harvest do you want to yield? Know the specific crop you want to grow in order to plant the right seeds.
Measurable–How will you know that the seeds you planted are growing? Know the specific milestones needed to cultivate your harvest and measure the growth.
Achievable–Can you grow this crop in your field? Know what you can grow in your field and what will grow well in your field.
Relevant–Is this the crop you want growing in your field? Know what needs to grow in your field in order to nourish your life or business.
Time-bound–How long will it take to grow this particular crop? Know when the harvest will be and use this deadline to plan accordingly.

What harvests would you like to see in your life in 2015?

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

~An Old Irish Blessing

Marian (McCoy) Boveri

[1] www.merriam-webster.com resolution

[2] www.merriam-webster resolve

Christmas Traditions–O Christmas Tree–How Lovely Are Your Branches!

Christmas Traditions–O Christmas Tree–How Lovely Are Your Branches!

Godey’s Lady’s Book
December 1850

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas tree, How lovely are your branches! ~ from “O Christmas Tree”

It’s time to celebrate Christmas and one of the many traditions that have come to be associated with this holiday is the Christmas tree. Whether it’s a real evergreen tree that was harvested at a tree farm or bought at a favorite Christmas tree lot or an artificial tree that is put up year after year–it is truly a welcome addition to the home at the holiday season. The practice of bringing greenery and evergreens into the home during the winter is as old of a practice as can be remembered. Decorating the home with greenery was in truth originally a remembrance and promise of the harvest to come.

It is said that in central Europe the practice of hanging a decorated evergreen tree upside down or creating a symbolic tree made of wood in the shape of a triangle as a symbol of Christianity became commonplace in certain areas as early as the 12th century. Legend has it that this practice originated with the 8th century monk, Saint Boniface from Devonshire, who went to Germany to teach the word of God. As trees were an important part of the inhabitants’ beliefs, the monk used the evergreen tree with its triangular shape to teach about the Trinity.

Another Christmas origin can be seen with the medieval practice during the 15th and 16th centuries of decorating an evergreen tree or branch with apples (representing the forbidden fruit) and wafers (representing the Eucharist and redemption). This was done for plays performed on Christmas Eve which at that time was also known as Adam and Eve’s Day.

It is commonly held that the origin of displaying a Christmas tree as we know it was in Northern Europe, most likely Germany, during the 16th century.
The first written record of the “Christmas” tree was in Riga, Latvia, when in 1510 a local merchant’s guild decorated a tree with roses, danced around it in the marketplace, and set it ablaze at the end. [1] This same written record refers to these same events occurring as early as 1476. [2]
In 1530, there is a record of trees being sold in the marketplace in Alsace, France (then in German territory) for the purpose of being brought into the home. There was a law that restricted their height to 8 shoe lengths (which is slightly over 4 feet). [1]
Early Christmas trees were decorated with fruit, nuts, and other edible foods.
Putting lights on the tree is said to have originated in the 16th century with Martin Luther who upon seeing the light of the stars shining through the evergreen trees, put candles on an evergreen tree as representative of “Jesus, who left the stars of heaven to come to earth at Christmas.” [3]

While the Christmas tree was brought to America as early as 1747 by Pennsylvania German immigrants, it was still not a common practice as late as the 1840s.

The first record of a public display of a Christmas tree in America was in the 1830s in Pennsylvania by German immigrants.
It was actually Queen Victoria of England and her German Prince Albert that brought the tradition of setting up and decorating a Christmas tree into mainstream practice. As Queen Victoria was popular with her subjects, what she did and what she wore quickly became trends. A picture of the Queen and her husband standing around a decorated Christmas tree was widely circulated in London in 1848. The same picture sans crown and mustache to make it more appealing to the American public was published in Godey’s Lady’s Book in 1850 (pictured above) and the Christmas tree soon became an accepted and practiced Christmas tradition.
In 1851 Christmas trees began to be sold commercially being randomly harvested from the forest.
By 1870 putting up a Christmas tree was a common practice in America.

In the end the use of greenery in the home has always been symbolic of the light shining in the darkness, the hope and promise of new growth, and everlasting life. What better way to celebrate Christmas, which is truly about the hope and promise of a Savior that comes to be the light of the world, than with a Christmas tree?!

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

~ an Old Irish Blessing

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Day–Arrival at the Old Home Harper’s Weekly Vol II, 27 Nov 1858, p. 760

I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.

– from Abraham Lincoln’s Proclamation of Thanksgiving, October 3, 1863

Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated in the U.S.A. and Canada. The U.S.A. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. It originates in the practice of making proclamations that set aside a day to give thanks to God for His provision. thanksgiving Day as we celebrate it is actually an expression of being thankful to God for the blessings of the harvest. Many equate the first Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims and Indians sitting down together to share a meal while giving thanks for an especially bountiful harvest in 1621 in Plymouth (Massachusetss). There are other claims for the first thanksgiving in America including one as early as 1565 in St. Augustine, Florida.

Thanksgiving as we know it today has more in common with the New England tradition of declaring days of Thanksgiving acknowledging God’s provision. Declaring a day of Thanksgiving in November in recognition of the provision of the harvest emerged as a regular occurrence in the 1660s. As New Englanders spread out into the growing country they brought along with them this tradition. The first official declaration of a day of Thanksgiving in November was in 1777 and others were declared from time-to-time until 1815. At that time it fell out of favor and reverted back to a regional observance to emerge once again in the 1850s.

In 1863 there were two days of national Thanksgiving declared by President Abraham Lincoln. The first on August 6 to celebrate the victory at Gettysburg and the other for the last Thursday in November in thanksgiving for the harvest. A proclamation had to be made each year to declare Thanksgiving’s observance until it was made a national holiday in 1941. In 1931 there were two Thanksgivings. Believing that moving the annual Thanksgiving observance one week earlier would give retailers more shopping days before Christmas, President Roosevelt issued a proclamation that Thanksgiving would be on the fourth Thursday instead of the last. It was actually this that caused Congress to finally set the national holiday.

Families gather together in thanksgiving with a feast commonly consisting of turkey as the main dish surrounded by stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, vegetables, etc. Pumpkin pie is a common dessert. It is common for families to have their own special dish that is served. It is a true time of tradition and remembering the past.

In the end Thanksgiving is indeed based on celebrating the harvest and as a time to gather the family together from near and far. It was promoted especially by Sarah Josepha Hale, the long-time editor of Godey’s Ladies Book (1837-1877), as a time to for the entire nation to express gratitude for its many blessings.

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

~An Old Irish blessing

Summer Harvest Time–Strawberries

Strawberry Harvest

It’s strawberry season with the summer harvest lasting from the beginning of June well into mid-August in most states. Strawberries are one of summer’s favorite harvests and cultivated through-out the country. Having originally grown wild and eaten as far back as the Roman times, it wasn’t until the early 1800s that the strawberry was widely cultivated. Amazingly there are now over 600 varieties of strawberries all originating from just 4 or 5 species in the wild. They are now grown in every state with California and Florida being the largest commercial producers and having the longest harvest seasons–from January all the way through to November with the peak seasons in these states being April through June.

Fresh strawberries can be found in supermarket stores but don’t forget your neighborhood farmer’s markets and local farms where you can pick the berries yourselves to enjoy them at their freshest. The flavor ranges from tart to sweet with the flavor of the strawberry at its peak when just picked. The larger the strawberry the more water content; the smaller the strawberry typically the more intense the flavor.

Strawberries don’t ripen after picking so make sure the strawberries you choose have a nice red color and are firm and plump with a green cap that appears fresh. And don’t forget the smell! Fresh strawberries have a delightful, fresh and sweet bouquet as they are a member of the rose family. Remember, the key to enjoying your strawberries is to wash them just before using. Strawberries will absorb water like a sponge so it is best to wait to rinse them. Store them in a moisture-proof container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days for optimal flavor and best before 3-5 days.

Hulling Strawberries using a Knife

Strawberries should be hulled for freezing or if not eating directly out of the hand. Hulling involves removing the inedible green cap by placing a knife tip under the green cap and slowly turning. Once you have made a full circle you can then just pull off the cap and a small amount of white part which is attached to the base of the stem of the strawberry. There is also a strawberry hull (see below) that you can purchase to do the same task but the knife should work just as well. Strawberries can also be frozen and stored in the freezer for up to 6 months. It is best to freeze them in a single layer before placing them in containers for freezing.

Some of the ways to enjoy the fresh summer harvest of strawberries:

Cut up in a bowl and pour cream on top, sprinkle with sugar if desired
Drizzle with balsamic vinegar of a good quality
Cut up and put into a fruit salad with your choice of fruits
Dipped in dark, milk, or white chocolate
Dipped in yogurt and if more sweetness is desired follow with dipping in brown sugar
Fold cut strawberries into whipped cream for the easiest of desserts Strawberry Fool
Cut up the strawberries, sprinkle with sugar, let sit and use as a sauce over ice cream
Put them in a blender with some milk and ice cream for a strawberry shake
Create a salsa adding some simple ingredients such as in this Strawberry Poblano Salsa

Of course strawberries can be preserved in jams and jellies and made into baked goods. Some popular baked goods include strawberry-rhubarb pie, strawberry crisp, and strawberry tart. Click here for a variety of strawberry recipes to enjoy. Whatever way you decide to enjoy your strawberries remember the harvest is sweetest just picked from the vine.

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand. ~ an Old Irish blessing

Strawberry Hull:

Note: This above link is part of an Affiliate Program with Amazon.

Holidays and Seasons–Christmas in July!

Holidays and Seasons–Christmas in July!

photo from www.glendaledailyplanet.com

Merry Christmas!

Well almost–there are only 6 months more to go. But wait–it really is time to celebrate Christmas–in July.

Some may wonder if the retailers have finally succeeded in bringing Christmas earlier and earlier to the point of absolute madness or could there be another reason for all this celebration?

Certainly there is some truth in using Christmas in July to create sales opportunities especially since there are no real holidays after Independence Day and before Labor Day. Creating a holiday in between is a great way to stir up sales–but retailers aren’t really to blame for starting this second Christmas celebration.

Before we look into its celebration, it is interesting to note that the first known recorded mention of Christmas in July was in the opera, “Werther”, written in 1892. In the story children practicing a Christmas song were admonished: “When you sing Christmas in July, you rush the season.” Guess even back then no one really wanted to see Christmas come before its time.

The first recollected celebration of Christmas in July happened in 1933 at Camp Keystone, a girl’s summer camp in North Carolina, where it was decided to hold a Christmas party at their camp-out complete with a Christmas tree, presents, and a visit from St. Nick. In 1935 the National Recreation Association’s magazine wrote “all mystery and wonder surround this annual event”.

Of course what better way to popularize something than through the movies? The next known boost to this holiday was through the 1940 movie “Christmas in July”.

Perhaps the most noble early celebration of Christmas in July comes in 1942 at Calvary Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. The pastor, following a practice from a former church he had attended in Philadelphia, collected gifts and donations early in order to distribute to missions worldwide in time for Christmas. Things didn’t move quite as quickly back then as they do now.

A Christmas campaign was instituted in July 1944 by the U.S. Post Office and the U.S. Army and Navy in conjunction with the American greeting card and advertising industries. A luncheon was held in July in New York to encourage early mailing for service men and women stationed overseas to assure the mail would reach them by Christmas. One must imagine that this most surely lent itself to a frenzy of Christmas shopping in July. A true retailer’s dream come true. Is it any wonder then that Christmas in July is something retailers quickly took a liking to?

By the 1950s Christmas in July sales were commonplace in the U.S. It was a great way for the retailers to clear out last season’s merchandise in preparation for the coming season. Christmas in July was officially here to stay.

There remains another Christmas in July origin (also known as Yulefest or Yuletide) which is centered around the thought that countries in the southern hemisphere who have their winter during this month want to celebrate Christmas during the cooler season just like their northern hemisphere counterparts do. As July is typically the coldest month, social gatherings during the winter easily led to festivities reminiscent of Christmas. In Australia, Christmas in July has become a big event with stores advertising just as if it were indeed Christmas and people decorating their homes and gathering to celebrate as well. It is believed to have originated with (or at least promoted by) an Irish group who upon seeing snow in July while visiting Sydney’s Blue Mountains thought it perfect for celebrating Christmas.

Whether or not you like the idea of celebrating Christmas twice–Christmas in July is here to stay. In the end–a little Christmas taken in its true spirit is something we all could do with having a little more of.

Merry Christmas!

Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand. ~ an Old Irish Blessing