Morning Chores

An early morning for Yari - He had been awoken early to the sound of a cockerel - making his presence very much known. Yari didn't mind, of course, he knew that he needed to tend to the farm as he so often did. It was to be a relatively quiet day - with just his usual tasks to complete. The Time Of Flowers was just upon the horizon, as he prepared for the forth-coming markets, which would no-doubt be taking advantage of the weather, and the surge of fruit and vegetables that it brought with it. He had peppers, apples, and carrots as his main crop this year, having found them more bountiful than they usually would be this time of year. He was glad of the change - he was beginning to be sick of seeing potatoes, and cabbages all year round. The sweetness of his new venture had treated him well thus far. He made his way out of his home, the sun just beginning to show its face over the mountains. This was his favorite time of the morning - when the grass was still saturated in dew, the sun itself seemed to be shaking its way out of its sleep, and, most of all, the silence that came with his early rising. He quite enjoyed the silence that followed him for the majority of his mornings - he found that it made his job easier, being able to focus on what he needed do to, rather than constantly being distracted by somebody having a conversation. He began with his apples, pulling his little step-ladder behind him. He wasn't the tallest of his folk, and although he could reach the apples on the bottom branches, those which resided in the middle always seemed to be the sweetest. He had brought his wicker basket with him, something which had served him extremely well over the years. He inspected the apples that he could reach on the first step, finding a few to be just-before ripe. They were maturing quickly, and would most definitely be ready in time for the surge in sales. It pleased him to see such progress - and made a mental note to remember to keep an eye on these trees over the weeks to come, nothing would annoy him more than if they were to become over-ripe. He did his very best to keep his crop as ripe as it could be, striving to give his customers the very best of the bunch. He plucked those that had ripened sufficiently, before placing them in the basket which hung at his hip. Five. Not as many as he would have hoped for, but enough to keep him going. He made his way down the ladder, choosing to leave the apples on the middle branches, hoping that he would remember to pluck them before they over-ripened. He folded his ladder down, resting it against the tree, before beginning to make his way over to the next field. His pepper-vines had been planted only a few months ago, but had already been rather bountiful. He loved to check on them in the mornings, taking great care not to bruise them as he inspected their growth. They had been growing enough to engulf the bamboo that he had placed to keep them sturdy - hoping that it would shelter them from any storms which would occur. Thankfully, they were still strong, and proceeded to grow upright. He made his way to his shed for a moment - grabbing some of the bamboo which he had ordered from the next village over, hoping that these thicker stems would be enough to keep the vines held upright. He removed the old bamboo from its place, before replacing it with the new stems. Standing back to inspect his handi-work, a soft smile came over his face. It was as if the peppers thanked him, swaying ever so slightly in the breeze. His basket still in-hand, he made his way back towards them, inspecting them as he did with the apples, those on the bottom first. The peppers had treated him slightly better than the apples, with quite a lot of them being ripe enough to harvest. And so he did. He plucked those who were willing - and placed them into his basket, turning each and every one of them over in his hands for a few moments, making sure that there were no signs of bugs, or other creatures which weren't supposed to be there. Due to the new technique that he had picked up, the insects which would usually reside here at this point in the year, had found better places to be. This made him immensely happy - as he would be able to save gold on pesticides. Once finishing with his peppers, he waved to them ever so slightly, a sign of respect that he had picked up in his childhood. He did his very best to show his crop respect, and in return, they grew beautifully. He made his way towards the carrot-field, a task which he didn't particularly love. Carrots prosper mostly in moist soil, and thus, the soil tended to stick to his feet. He huffed ever so slightly, being sure not to step on any of the crop. This year, he had planted a catch-crop, radishes, which would nourish the carrots in a way that the soil couldn't. He had found it extremely helpful, and the carrots had grown rather large because of it. He didn't love radishes in the way that he loved carrots - but they were a way to make a few extra gold to keep him warm for the winter. He performed his usual routine of checking the crop - which wasn't so easy, considering that they were underground. He removed those that had rotted, making a note of the areas where the soil was just a slight-bit too damp. Once more, he plucked those that were ready, and placed them into his basket, which now was overflowing with crop. He was proud of his progress of the day - a soft smile coming over his cheeks. The sun, at this point, had become tired, and began to make its way under the veil of clouds. He knew that it was almost time to return back inside, placing some dry-soil into the places where the ground had become too wet for his carrots, before picking up his basket, and beginning to make his way back home. He passed each of the fields that he had previously visited, a soft wave of his hand to each and every crop which had treated him so well today. He couldn't help but be proud of himself - glad that his crop had treated him well. He was excited for the markets to begin once more, knowing that he always picked up some new ideas, and techniques from the other farmers which cared for their crop in the same way that he did. He loved to share his own ideas with them, and over time, he had gone so far as to write down some of the things that he had learned - there were so many that he couldn't possibly remember them all off of the top of his head. Writing them down reassured him that he was doing each technique right, and surely enough, he was. Many a year he had been the awe of the village, with a huge yield from his crop. It made him extremely happy to be able to share his own tips, and he loved to see the farmers the next year, when their own crop has become larger. Making his way back into his home, he placed his basket onto the table, before beginning the task of making himself some food.