Sitting in the sugarhouse tonight, just tending the evaporator. We've got 150 gallons of sap in storage from this past week, and the warm temps mean it needs to be processed right now. So, it will be a late night. Possibly an early morning, even.
Our sugarhouse is back in the woods, no neighbors, no house lights, no sound except the hiss of steam, and the sizzle of the occasional drop of condensate from the preheater.
The night sky is beautiful this evening. A full, or almost full moon, framed by a slight haze of fog. Through the trees I can see its reflection in a pond's surface. Stunning.
So I'm struck by a curious thought..my education, that my parents worked so hard to provide for me, allows me to understand the how's and the why's of these things. I know why the moon looks as it does, just like I can calculate the volume of steam that rises from the pan, or explain the process whereby sap is caused to migrate through the tree. The logical, practical side of me understands it pretty well. It's just physics, math, and principle. Easy, right?
Or it would be, if it weren't for my lifelong country boy side, who smiles at the notion that it can all be explained, classified, and categorized, with little to no regard for the substance of the thing.
Sure, the math works. The same as it always has. But these days, the math isn't enough.
Wish you guys were here, to enjoy it with me.
