You Just Knew It Had To End

You plant your tomatoes.  You nurse them along.  You imagine all the wonderful things you will make with fresh, red, garden tomatoes.  The very thought makes your mouth water.  Sure enough, eventually your tomatoes ripen and ripen and ripen. Soon tomatoes are present at nearly every meal and take up counter space, sill space, refrigerator space (Sorry Jess!).  Finally some of your excess crop is in your car when you go to work hoping friends will love your bounty as much as you do. Now the freezer has all the jars of sauce and bags of whole tomatoes I can stand to make. Sadly though, I look around my kitchen this morning and see the last few tomatoes I picked when still very green before our first hard freeze.  Gradually while wrapped in newspaper they have ripened and are ready to eat. Now I will horde them, use them sparingly, and treat them like valuable little gems as I did when the very first tomatoes ripened in my garden months ago.  Tomato season is over inspite of all the tricks to prolong it.  You just knew it had to end.