A Diem to Carpe

By Uncle Dale

My daughter shared with me one of her favorite quotes from movies. It is from “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.” I have never seen the movie but when she shared the line with me, it was forever stuck in my mind – “a diem to carpe.” I like it better than carpe diem – seize the day. So now each morning, regardless of the season or weather, I jump out of bed, go out onto my deck that overlooks my backyard farm and exclaim to myself “a diem to carpe!” I have a day to seize as I look on our chickens and horses, our fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers, our lawns, pastures, woods and ponds, and the timeless and historical Antietam Creek. 

Rebel and Peaches graze the lush pasture by the barn in the cool morning mist.

Another of my favorite quotes captures what we are trying to accomplish. The Mormon Prophet Brigham Young said to his followers who were pioneering a whole new ecosystem in the Great Basin of western North America, “The soil, the air, the water are all pure and healthy. Do not suffer them to become polluted. Strive to preserve the elements from being contaminated. Keep your valleys pure, keep your towns pure, keep your hearts pure, and labor as hard as you can. Adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations.” That last line encompasses everything we do at Antietam Glen. It is a sublime pleasure when angels in the form of our children, grandchildren, relatives, friends, neighbors, and unseen angels - father and mother - come to visit our beautiful location.

 Last night’s rain nourishes the garden.

You don’t need a large property to do what we are doing. My son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter live in inner city Arlington, Virginia where my son works at the Pentagon to keep us safe. They own one unit of a duplex on an extremely steep hill. Their terraced yard is small but they have turned it into a veritable Garden of Eden.  Fruit, vegetables, herbs, and flowers adorn their habitation. As we eat dinner on their terrace surrounded by this sanctuary, I am just as content in the middle of the city as I am at our country property.

 The layers go to work to make eggs.

My sister and brother-in-law work tirelessly in suburban Sandy, Utah (aptly named) to turn their backyard farm into Eden through raised beds. They are serenaded by the neighbor’s suburban layers just on the other side of the fence.  Michael and Marisa have perhaps the greatest challenge as they struggle to make their acre of desert “blossom as a rose.” But they have thousands of assistants as “deseret” (honeybees) work alongside them.  

So I admonish each of you to seize the day and adorn your habitation. Make a garden, orchard, and vineyard. Render the earth so pleasant that your angels will come and visit your beautiful location.

Families come and go at Antietam Glen but the creek flows on forever.