Winter Days at the Farm

Once I returned to South Africa after 5 weeks away, I was greeted my mother at the airport who was already here. Two days later, mom and I drove up to the Karoo to visit my Gran and Uncle Dene and Aunt Patty on their farm. I experienced the coldest South African weather yet, temperatures of -2 Celcius, about 28 F, without central heating! Brrrr, it was freezing, especially in an old farm house with stone floors designed for hot, summer days. The weather limited our activities to being bound up by cloth and visiting in Gran's cottage where at least there was a small heater.

The winter landscapes of the Karoo were just heavenly because of the cold. The "Sneeuberg" mountains in the distance were appropriately named for once, as sneeu means snow & berg means mountain. The fields were covered in a delicate, glistening frost in the morning & the colors of the area, golds and purples, looked just divine in the soft winter light.

When the weather is so cold & your housebound with little to do, the days are centered entirely around the meals & eating. Mom & I took a day to make pumpkin fritters and later she baked a cake for Gran, 3 months in advance of her birthday, just for fun! As you look through the photos, also notice Katrina holding my foot. Katrina is my grand-mother's caregiver by day & my mom did something special by asking her to give us foot treatments, something she does regularly for my Gran. So with woolie hats on our heads, we sat outside soaking up the strong morning sun & had our nails cut to the most superb pedicure scenery I've ever imagined!

By our last day, the weather had warmed up enough for Dene, Mom & me to go on a hike by the kloof (cliff) and have a braai (bbq) by the river. As usual, it was a tearful goodbye for Mom & Gran. This annual trip my mother makes to see her mother is always marked by never knowing if it will be the last. The whispery winter drive away at dawn was filled with tears, buffered by the beautiful running ostriches & guinea fowl on the road side, taking in the quiet of Sunday.