Thursday, June 21, 2012

Thursday, June 21st, 2012 is the second day of summer. Ninety-two days remain in this season. It is the Mulberry Day. #WilboSummerCount

I bike under mulberry trees dropping fruit, and the fruit crushes under tires and feet and splotches the pavement with purple blots. We found a Mulberry in our back yard when we moved into our farmhouse in 1970. I loved to climb in that tree and even fell out of it. Okay, I was using an umbrella as a parachute. I was taking Mary Poppins too seriously. My grandfather was astounded to see me drop from the canopy and hit the grass. "Wilbo, are you all right?" He asked, and I assured him I was okay. I lied to him. My right hip hurt, and I stood up and walked it off.
 
I was reading about mulberry this morning, and I always sensedthe bark had an enchanting fragrance. That fragrance arises from a sap I have learned in intoxicating, and will cause hallucinations. Yep, as a six year old boy, I chewed on the leaves, not knowing the leaves shared a feature with khat, Catha edulis, the chewable plant of Yemen.  I guess I played with catnip for the same reason, breaking open the hollow stem. I was an inadvertant stoner in my mother's backyard.
 
I see the range of the mulberry makes it a southern plant, a range that dwindles halfway up the mitten of Lower Michigan.
 
I could have picked the monarch, the flowering milkweed or the flower prickly pear for this day's name. All are making a brief summer appearance this week.
 

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