Autumn in Bulgaria is like an English summer
Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun; (....) providing still more, later flowers for the bees, Until they think warm days will never cease (To Autumn, by John Keats)
These words from John Keats’ famous poem came to mind looking out over my garden today. It is now the 19th of October, and it could be yet another summer’s day. Temperatures are still in the high twenties, and we have had no rain for weeks. The weather forecast (amazingly accurate here, even down to the time of day it will rain, if rain is forecast) predicts yet a further week of full sun. Autumn in Bulgaria is like a summer in England.
I know from speaking to friends back in England that summer is definitely over there! “We’re under water!” complained one such. “We’re growing web feet!” exclaimed another. I feel so lucky, and so blessed to live here: the seemingly inexhaustible display of flowers, the swollen gourds, the vines with their remnants of our grape harvest, and our abundance of walnuts all remind me of Keats’ poem.
And the bees! Our garden is alive with their drunkenness as they suck up what is left of the, now fermenting, grape juice. They are joined by a bustle of birds screeching and flapping amongst the branches of our large pear tree. I’m not sure if they are after the insects or the fruit, but I’ve never seen birds behave like this in England!
Seasonal decorating
Due to the abundance of garden produce I decide to try my hand at decorating our home for fall for the first time. We have just so many pumpkins! I place some in every room and add the wreaths I have made from the grapevine trimmings. It’s very simple, but I now understand why the Americans enjoy doing this. As Christians, we don’t celebrate halloween, but the pumpkins make colourful vignettes.
Harvesting and preserving
Like Keats’ poem, we are preparing for the inevitable winter. Jeff has been busy sawing and chopping logs; I have been busy drying and preserving our herbs for use during the winter casserole season and canning the last of the tomatoes; and we have both been active in preparing wine and cider 
. This is our busiest month and we go to bed exhausted every night.
I have my winter wardrobe at the ready, but for now we feel like the warm days “will never cease”, and we are still in T shirts and sandals!
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