Mushrooms
As I write this, it is the first week of August. Weather-wise, this year seems unusual. To my recollection, spring was drier than expected while the summer has been wetter than expected. In fact, I believe we have had at least one significant rainstorm every week since July 1.
This impacts my mowing schedule. In the spring, when it is wet, I’m used to trying to mow every five days. This stretches to once a week as the rain occurrences diminish. By August, I expect to mow once every 10-14 days. By late August, I’ve seen our grass turn brown and, for all practical purposes, go into winter hibernation.
Imagine my surprise when I looked out into our backyard and saw a couple of patches of mushrooms growing. I’m used to seeing a few mushrooms pop up here and there in the early spring, but not in August. And it’s not just my yard. I can see a couple of mushroom patches in my neighbor's yard too. By the way, these are the large-cap mushrooms that probably are associated with the saying, “All mushrooms are edible, but some only once.”
“Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things! Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield. “Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.” - Joel 2:21-24 ESV
My CEO/rancher once told me the grass will continue growing as long as there is moisture. He believed the grass stopped growing in the fall (and he had to start supplementing his cattle with hay) as the rain slowed down. That theory seems to fit with my observations of rain so far this year and my resulting mowing pattern and the unexpected arrival of late-summer mushrooms.
God's universe includes all kinds of plants and animals. Every plant and animal has cycles that depend on the weather. The next time your plans are messed up because of the weather, remember there is a much larger plan.
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.” - Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
