COMPLETED WORK
Completed Sept. 15, 2000.

PUMPKIN CYCLE

The Dying Pumpkin Vine. September 15, 2000.

The fall has arrived. The once upright leaves and stalks of the pumpkin vine
have fallen, and are returning quietly again to dust. Today, I cut this year's
pumpkin off the dying vine, and brought it into the house to await its next
transformation into a "Jack-o-Lantern". With this, my involvement in the recording
of the events of this "work in progress" ends, but the work itself goes on, and
hopefully will continue far into the future.

What follows are the WORK IN PROGRESS notes compiled for this work:

Pumpkin. Aug. 24, 2000.

If people could follow the ancient way,
Then they would be masters of the moment.
-from: Tao Te Ching, chapter 14.

Background

A few years ago, my family visited a local archaeological site where we learned
of the Native American practice of cooperatively growing corn, beans and squash.
These three plants growing together were known as the Three Sisters. We liked
the natural harmony, the fact that the people themselves knew of and encouraged
its existence, and the mythology they developed to keep the knowledge of the
benefits of this cooperative growing alive. We decided that we could benefit from
having such a respect for nature, so we planted a Three Sisters garden in our
backyard.

In the fall of 1998, and I don't remember exactly how, we decided that instead
of squash, we might be able to grow pumpkins. The squash and pumpkin vines are
almost identical, so the harmony of the three sisters would not be lost. It might
even be possible to grow 1999's pumpkin from 1998's Jack-o-lantern! So, upon carving
the Jack-o-lantern, known as "Orange", we carefully saved the seeds, then after
Halloween, we placed the the seeds back in the pumpkin, and placed it in the three
sisters garden circle. The photo below is the record of that moment.

Alison, Michael and "Orange" the pumpkin. Nov. 1, 1998.

We watched the whole process of decomposition and regrowth through the seasons
that followed, and by the late summer of 1999, we actually had grown a new pumpkin
from the previous year's. Regardless of the art and science of cooperative growing,
and regardless of the history or mythology surrounding the Three Sisters, what a
fascinating experience this was for our family. We decided that this would become
a yearly tradition, and we would keep the generations of pumpkins going so long
as nature chose to allow us to. The act itself has come to symbolize our family values
of simplicity, cooperation, respect, and living in harmony with nature.

Foreground

I am not the creator of this work, but rather simply a recorder, so calling
it a "work in progress" is a bit of a misnomer. The "work in progress" referred
to here is really just my recording of it.

I thought I might like to illustrate a children's book based on the life cycle
of a pumpkin. Having successfully completed one cycle, and deciding to do it again,
I thought it might be an idea to record the events of the year on film, and later
use the images as references for the illustrations. With the development of this
Web site, I decided that I would post the photos directly on the Web for all the world
to see.

There is so much I can say about my observations, thoughts and feelings, with
regard to the growing of pumpkins, but I think I will let the images do the talking,
and leave it up to the viewers to get out of it what they will.

Middle ground

The pumpkin that starts the series below is the first generation offspring
of "Orange". If you would like to see a painting I did of this pumpkin click here.

In the spring of 1999, I expanded the garden circle to accommodate the larger
pumpkin vine. The upright stalks visible in the early photos are stalks remaining
from the corn.

Now, please take a moment to dwell on the wonder of what follows.


1. Fully Grown Pumpkin Sept. 30, 1999.	2. After Halloween Nov. 1, 1999.	3. Early in the Winter Jan. 1, 2000.


4. Under the Snow Feb. 15, 2000.	5. The Sun Returns Apr. 1, 2000.	6. Beyond Description May 11, 2000.


7. Building the Roots June 12, 2000.	8. Stretching Out June 21, 2000.	9. Father and Mother July 10, 2000.


10. Beneath the Flower July 10, 2000.	11. Green but Growing July 18, 2000.	12. Mature and Orange Aug. 24, 2000.

When the people lack a sense of awe,
There is bound to be disorder and disaster.
-from: Tao Te Ching, chapter 72.

Your comments and questions are welcomed. E-mail me.

I have created a page that will allow you to print the 12 images above without
including the text or other images from this page. All 12 images appear on one
page. For best results use high resolution paper and a photo quality cartridge.
If you would like to go to this simplified page, click here.

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