Katherine Nicolai

It was decorated with someone's hand-drawn flowers and baskets of vegetables. I stood for a bit, booted, mittened, zipped into my heavy coat and wrapped in scarves and hat, and dreamed about green things and blue skies. I'd reached out with my clumsy mitten and pulled off a scrap from the flyer with a phone number.

It was decorated with someone's hand-drawn flowers and baskets of vegetables. I stood for a bit, booted, mittened, zipped into my heavy coat and wrapped in scarves and hat, and dreamed about green things and blue skies. I'd reached out with my clumsy mitten and pulled off a scrap from the flyer with a phone number.

A few days later, when a friend was sitting at my kitchen table for a cup of coffee, I'd pulled it out, and we'd made a plan.

A few days later, when a friend was sitting at my kitchen table for a cup of coffee, I'd pulled it out, and we'd made a plan.

A few days later, when a friend was sitting at my kitchen table for a cup of coffee, I'd pulled it out, and we'd made a plan.

Soon we had a stack of books with torn out magazine articles folded into the pages, charts of what was going where and when, and a dusty basket of the tools we'd need to make it happen.

Soon we had a stack of books with torn out magazine articles folded into the pages, charts of what was going where and when, and a dusty basket of the tools we'd need to make it happen.

Soon we had a stack of books with torn out magazine articles folded into the pages, charts of what was going where and when, and a dusty basket of the tools we'd need to make it happen.

I had a few apples for us and a whole batch of my date bars, topped with cardamom crumble, tucked in wax paper in an old cookie tin.

I had a few apples for us and a whole batch of my date bars, topped with cardamom crumble, tucked in wax paper in an old cookie tin.

I had a few apples for us and a whole batch of my date bars, topped with cardamom crumble, tucked in wax paper in an old cookie tin.

They had two little boys who ran around in the sun, coming back to the table for a moment or two to take a bite out of a sandwich or a piece of fruit, then chasing back to play.

They had two little boys who ran around in the sun, coming back to the table for a moment or two to take a bite out of a sandwich or a piece of fruit, then chasing back to play.

They had two little boys who ran around in the sun, coming back to the table for a moment or two to take a bite out of a sandwich or a piece of fruit, then chasing back to play.

By the time we were done and gathering up our tools, our little plot was a tidy patch of neat rows, careful mounds protecting seeds that would sprout soon, and evenly spaced plants.

By the time we were done and gathering up our tools, our little plot was a tidy patch of neat rows, careful mounds protecting seeds that would sprout soon, and evenly spaced plants.

By the time we were done and gathering up our tools, our little plot was a tidy patch of neat rows, careful mounds protecting seeds that would sprout soon, and evenly spaced plants.

I guess we'd better learn how to can, I laughed.

I guess we'd better learn how to can, I laughed.

I guess we'd better learn how to can, I laughed.