Lesson 56
Our neighbour, the river
Why had the neighbours left their farm?
The river which forms the eastern boundary of our farm has always played an important part in our lives.
Without it we could not make a living.
There is only enough spring water to supply the needs of the house so we have to pump from the river for farm use.
We tell the river all our secrets.
We know instinctively, just as beekeepers with their bees,
that misfortune might overtake us if the important events of our lives were not related to it.
We have special river birthday parties in the summer.
Sometimes we go upstream to a favourite backwater,
sometimes we have our party at the boathouse,
which a predecessor of ours at the farm built in the meadow hard by the deepest pool for swimming and diving.
In a heat wave we choose a midnight birthday party and that is the most exciting of all.
We welcome the seasons by the riverside, crowning the youngest girl with flowers in the spring,
holding a summer festival on Midsummer Eve, giving thanks for the harvest in the autumn, and throwing a holly wreath into the current in the winter.
After a long period of rain the river may overflow its banks.
This is a rare occurrence as our climate seldom goes to extremes.
We are lucky in that only the lower fields,
which make up a very small proportion of our farm, are affected by flooding,