October 1

October is an odd month for beginnings. In the seasonal rhythm of life here in Bowdoinham, it is more of a time for drawing to a close and preparation for the lengthy cold, without much precision and difficult to predict. With no hard frost yet the garden lingers on, half in repose and half still in meager production – some lettuce , carrots and beets, and of course kale – close to ready for a final planting of garlic and a winter coat of hay. It’s chilly enough so that a fire in the morning feels right, but the third cup of coffee is usually taken with the door wide open to turn down the heat. Today is the first day of duck season, though, and so the duck boats are out on Merrymeeting Bay, floating blinds, many of them built right here in town. The Abenaki named the bay “Quavicook”, the water of many ducks, and though there are still thousands that feed on the wild rice that garnishes this freshwater tidal estuary, they are no longer “thick as gnats”, and taking them is more for nostalgic sport than for filling the larder. Oranges, yellows , browns and reds are splashing across the forest palette, bright this year perhaps for all the wet of early summer, a splendid “closing for the season” sign hung out until the bite of the Northwest wind takes it down.
But now is better than someday soon, yes more real than “I will”, and so I begin.