On these hot spring days, I love getting up well before sunrise, basking in coolness and darkness, listening to the world slowly wake up: kookaburras first, then roosters, and finally the sheep and goats, eager to start grazing before the searing heat sends them scuttling for the nearest shade tree.

Yesterday I spent the morning pulling weeds with my friend Avis on her farm a few hills over. We do a trade: hay for pulling weeds. It’s a great trade, since we both receive what we need and have a jolly time visiting for hours while we dig and yank and tidy. It was so good to talk about life, real life, while we worked. The hard and sad stuff, the beautiful and inspiring stuff, the stuff that is so hilarious it had us bursting out laughing over there in the middle of nowhere. I returned home with a full heart and a trunk overflowing with freshly dug turnips, just picked tangelos, lemons, and limes, and a potted jasmine that will soon be clambering up and over my gardens. It’s good to work with friends.

This week I needed some extra rest, so I brought in some yarn to play with while I recovered. I did some finger-knitting and made tassels and then remembered some handmade glass beads a friend had given me awhile back. So I brought those in too and made cheery beaded tassels to put on our Christmas tree and wherever else I fancy.

It was lovely sitting there, the late afternoon sun shimmering on the walls and setting the beads aglow. I’ve loved beads since I was a little girl, and have always had jars or bowls full of my favorites sitting around the house. Just seeing them with their rich colors and intricate patterns makes me happy.

The tassels make me smile too, mostly because they look like dancing women, twirling and bobbing with nary a care in the world.

In a few hours, good friends are coming over to see our baby chicks, go for a hike in the bush, and visit for hours. I’m looking forward to it so much.

The sun is up now, so it’s time to brew coffee, tidy up, and put the bread rolls on to rise.

What are you looking forward to this weekend? xo