The Sweetest Time of the Year

For most folks, the sweetest time of the year probably comes around a holiday, or perhaps a favorite season. For some, it might be a birthday or anniversary. For us, the sweetest time of the year comes, quite literally, in February. That's because it's sugaring time!

My sweet hubby has been busy this week, with the culmination of what is, in some ways, a year-round event. From cutting wood in the fall to cleanup in late March, maple syrup is on his mind. But the fun part comes now, when the sugar water is flowing, and the sugar house is warm with wood fires

and a lot of steam.

This year's first run produced about nine gallons of beautiful, clear syrup. Making syrup that is pretty, just the right thickness, and delicious is an art, learned through many years of practice. Robin learned from his Uncle Lohr:

From the time he was big enough to carry a bucket of sugar water, Robin helped with the entire process, from tree to table. When we moved to Davis Run, Robin lent his sugar-making labor and skill to our wonderful neighbors for several years before venturing off on his own. Now, sugarin' off on Davis Run is an annual event enjoyed by neighbors, friends, family, and anyone else who happens by. In the end, when all the folks have gone and there's time to really look, a good run of syrup is really a work of art.

The trees have stopped running now, since the above-freezing daytime temperatures needed have been nonexistent these past three days. Once this cold snap is over, the sugar water should start to flow again, and Robin will be busy gathering and boiling. After all there are still two weeks of February left, and that means our sweetest time of year will last a little while longer.

It's A Party!

A couple of weeks ago, when I got home from Sunday School, this is what I found in our driveway:

It seems we were having a party in the sugar house! It always happens at least once every sugar season, that unplanned gathering of folks who somehow sense that we're cooking syrup, hot dogs, and fellowship.

Your age, gender, or occupation don't matter in the sugar house. It doesn't matter whether or not you know everyone else, or anyone else. It doesn't matter what you wear, as long as it's warm. And it won't matter that you'll go home with bloodshot eyes and smelling like smoke.

It doesn't even matter if you're not human.

All that matters is making sure you're standing in the path of the steam from the evaporator and not the smoke from the fire under the kettle (where you get the red eyes and the smoky smell). This makes for a constant migration in and out of the sugar house, an excellent way to get to know and visit with everyone there.

Everyone can have a turn testing the syrup with Robin's grandmother's dipper to see if it's anywhere near ready to pull off the fire.

You can't leave without having a "maple dog" in the sugar house. Once you've tasted a maple dog, no other hot dog will ever measure up. They really do taste better than hot dogs cooked any other way, but maybe the ambiance of the sugar house adds to the flavor a bit.

Even if there's no snow on the ground, we can serve up the classic sugar house dessert. Clinkers are made by pouring hot syrup over clean snow, or ice cubes in a pinch. Clinkers are similar to taffy. They stick to your teeth and taste sooo good!

And no matter how hard you try, you won't get all the sticky off until you get home and take a hot bath.

A party in the sugar house does a body good. There's something about the syrup and steam, people and conversation, laughter and relaxation that soothes the soul. And when everyone is gone and the sugar house is dark and quiet, there's a jar full of sweet memories to enjoy all year long.

What's A Good Neighbor Worth?

When we bought our land here on Davis Run back in 1990, there were a lot of reasons why it was the perfect place for us: great location, great price, and great neighbors. Of those three, the neighbors across the road turned out to be the greatest blessing. It's a good thing, too, because they were our only neighbors in sight. The other folks who live on our road are great neighbors as well, but Bob and Jerry (yes, Jerry is a woman) opened their lives to us, teaching us by example just what it means to be a good neighbor. Sadly, the day came when they needed to live closer to kin and doctors, stores, and such. But we got to be their neighbors for 15 wonderful years before they left, and we cherish the memories we made and the lessons we learned while they lived across the road.

Bob and Jerry moved away a few years ago because time wouldn't stop and old age crept in. Their house was sold and we were nervous about getting new neighbors. After all, anybody could end up there and no one could replace Bob and Jerry. Would new folks be friendly? Would we have anything in common? What if they were loud and bothersome? Hard to get along with? We had no idea. Over five years later and after a nice couple who found Davis Run too far away from civilization and a family that was "distant," to put it nicely, we finally have new neighbors who are going to stay. And wonder of wonders, they're great neighbors!

Rhonda and Carter are our age and like us, have only four-legged children. They're friendly, fun, and not at all loud or bothersome. In fact, they already feel like old friends. We're relieved, thankful, and excited about our new neighbors. They even like to make syrup! This year is their "apprenticeship" year as they learn the ropes of tapping, gathering, boiling, and bottling. It's wonderful to have the good company and the good help, all in one package right across the road. It's just like before, with Bob and Jerry, only now we're the ones showing how and Rhonda and Carter are the ones walking across the road.

Although neither of us have ever lived near really bad neighbors, Robin and I learned from Bob and Jerry that really good neighbors are priceless. If we can be half the neighbors to Rhonda and Carter that Bob and Jerry were to us, we just might leave our corner of Davis Run as sweet as we found it.

Bob and Robin visit in the sugar house.
It turned out to be Bob's last visit with us.

Jerry was excited to have us as neighbors and brought
us the most delicious meal on moving day many years ago.

Carter, left, helps Robin take the pan
off the fire. It's almost syrup!

Carter is getting really good at a very important syrup skill:
making "maple dogs" in the sugar house They're hot dogs
boiled in the syrup and then roasted over the fire.
They're mighty tasty!

Rhonda has found her niche as official record keeper.

Sugarin' Off

We're sugarin' off on Davis Run! Yep, it's that time of year again, when the trees run, the fires burn, and the steam rolls. Sound crazy? Well, sometimes it can be, but it's always a lot of work and a lot of fun.

We make pure maple syrup. Actually, my husband makes it. I just put it in jars or jugs once it's all thick and syrupy and sweet. Sugarin' off, as the process is sometimes called, is a busy time. It usually lasts about a month, and is totally controlled by the weather. It's the rhythm of freezing and thawing temperatures that makes the sugar water flow. Such conditions occur in our corner of the world between late January and early March. Those same freezing and thawing temperatures also mean mud. Don't be fooled by picturesque scenes of draft horses pulling barrel-laden sleds through white and fluffy snow to gather the water. More often than not, it's mud we're slogging through with the tractor or truck and a sturdy pair of muck boots.

For folks who don't know how it's done, the making of maple syrup is an odd process. Drilling small holes in perfectly healthy trees seems cruel to some, and the thought of eating something that flows out of those holes is a little foreign, even exotic. For those of us who have been around it for years, it's as natural as can be. It's a yearly ritual and a rite of spring. It's also a source of delicious syrup, a little (or a lot) of extra income, and sometimes sore muscles and aching backs. But it's also one of best times of the year because of the people it brings to our sugar house.

There's something about sugarin' that brings folks together. Family, neighbors, and friends all find their way here during syrup season, which makes all the hard work so much easier, even fun. Gathering the sugar water (that's what we in Highland County call it; the books call it sap) is happy work when you have someone along to help. All the lifting and carrying and pouring can get tiresome by yourself, but with a friend or neighbor it lightens considerably. Tending the sugar fires can get lonesome, even sleepy, with the hum of the boil, the steam, and the long hours, but with someone to talk to and reminisce with, the time flies by. And at the end of it all, there are jars and jugs of golden, yummy sweetness to share and enjoy.

So, if you find yourself in our neck of the woods during the next three or four weeks, come on by! If the weather cooperates, we'll be gathering and boiling and you're welcome to join us. Sometimes we're even in the sugar house without any sugar water to boil. It's just what we do this time of year!



The Sweet Life Redefined

I'm new at this; blogging, that is. I think a lot, but seldom get my thoughts down in written form. This blog is an attempt to do just that. Whether or not anyone wants to join me remains to be seen. Also still to be seen is whether or not I can keep this up on a regular basis. Time will tell!

I titled this blog "The Sweet Life" for two reasons. First off, our little "farm" is named Sweet Run because we live on Davis Run, and because we make maple syrup, and because life in our little corner of the planet is indeed sweet. However, I do need to remind myself of my many blessings, since I tend to let day-to-day irritations cloud my view. And so, perhaps this blog will help me pay more attention to the ordinary wonders all around me. Perhaps it will help me focus on all the positives in my life. Perhaps it will even help me get better at turning negatives into positives. So here goes!

Maple syrup season is winding down. It's a lot of work, with some good fun thrown in, but it only lasts a few weeks and is therefore pretty intense. Sometimes I get weary. But there's a lesson in syrup. Since it takes about 40 gallons of sugar water to make one gallon of syrup, all the extra water has to be boiled away. That takes time and effort, but once it's done, sweet syrup remains. Life also takes time and effort, but when we sort through all the extra stuff, the sweet life remains.