Today Was An Ember Day

Today was an “Ember Day.”

The Harvest is Ready.

Pre-Vatican II, four “Ember Days” were set aside for fasting and abstinence so that we could fill our day with thoughts of thanksgiving. The Fall Ember Day focused on thanksgiving for the grape harvest – from which comes the Precious Blood.

Living in an agriculture community – and because I often write about agriculture events, families, and news – the harvest is heavy on my heart each time this fall Ember Day comes around. 

Our farmers work hard all year round. 

It is easy to think about our agriculture families during spring planting and fall harvest, but the truth is, they give their lives to serve others. They plan in the winter for the upcoming year, they plant in the spring with hopes of a strong growing season, they are vigilant throughout the summer monitoring each field, and they pray for a good yield in the fall. 

I’ve watched farming families experience the fear of a drought, the joy of a choice growing season, and all the emotions in between. I’ve learned to understand the stress that farming families undergo – particularly those family farms. 

It is family farms that I most often see taking Sundays off to allow their family and other hired hands to go to church. It is those family farms where I see children learning how to be a part of the family business and to appreciate discipline, early mornings, and togetherness. It is those family farms which impress upon me the Midwest values of hard work, devotion to family, and faith in God.

I grew up in suburbia – and agriculture was far from my daily thoughts, much less my prayers. But when I began writing for our local paper – The Woodstock Independent – I these farming families became a part of my circle. 

When the planting season comes, I take photographs of the seeding – and I get excited when I see the sprouts popping through the dirt. Throughout the summer, I watch the growth of the crops, and I get nervous when hailstorms come or when we get flooding or when we have drought. And, when the harvest comes, I pray for good yields and for peace for their families during the most difficult time of the year for them. 

*Last night, I saw them harvest with lights on their combines under the Harvest Moon.

So, as we fasted and abstained from meat today, my husband and I thought about the great blessing we have in our farmers – and in our entire agriculture community. I am thankful for the abundant blessings God bestows on them in their crops and I’m thankful for the families who never give up – the families who know how hard this life is, but who love the land and love the feel of it in their hands.

You’ll never meet better neighbors than farmers – at least in my community. They will drop whatever they are doing to help a person in need. They know there is something greater than them. They nurture the soil, and they have faith that, come harvest, God will bless them abundantly. 

Without them, we would not have food on our tables.

On this Ember Day, I filled my own hunger with prayers of thanksgiving and gratitude. 

**Ember Days are no longer part of our liturgical calendars, but I think they are worthwhile to contemplate in our family. We can all use more gratefulness in our lives!

Farmers working on one of the first days of harvest.

Last night's Harvest Moon with a Partial Lunar Eclipse.