The seasons turn. Today is the first day of Summer. The longest day of the year, but as the sun set around 6:30 pm it whips me right back to where I am: only a few degrees north of the equator.
Ruminating over cultures and history, I wonder how the indigenous Guyanese lived before inevitable onset of colonialism. In England, the season were a large part of society. In Winter the climate is cold and rainy, fair in the Fall (and possibly rainy), green in the Spring (and less rainy), and nice in the summer. Moreover, there are some historians that theorize Stonehenge was built as a calender used by the early Brits. Likewise, I remember referring to a British historian's book about the importance of the seasons and ceremonies in England when I was writing papers in History class. He mentioned how many of the Catholic holidays had sprung from old pagan practices at different times of the year (when to plant, a celebration in mid-winter, etc.).
But thinking about the Guyanese I am baffled. It rains, it's dry, rivers flood, cassava grows in the interior, tons of fruits and coconuts fall off trees almost year round (I am simplifying, of course). Did the early Guyanese plant during the rainy season because the ground was soft and water was plentiful? Was there a risk of losing crops from excessive rain? Or was this something that came about because of global warming? Was there early irrigation systems the stemmed from the rivers like Ancient Egypt? Did the indigenous people have a knack for predicting the weather? ( I mean we can predict pretty well and it's only been a few months). What was their experience like? Did they hunt the wild beasts of the savannahs, coastlands, jungles and rainforests? So many questions. Perhaps I should look for a book....
Anyway: HAPPY SUMMER SOLSTICE EVERYONE!!
Some photos:
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| The full moon earlier this month. I love DSLRs! |
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| Summer Shadows play long across our paved roads. |
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| Summer Days to come. |
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