Mulberries & Silkworms

We had a huge mulberry tree at the bottom of our garden and spent ages collecting fresh leaves for our silkworms who lived part-time in a shoe box and breathed through the thousands of holes we had stabbed in the lid with a freshly sharpened pencil. We loved witnessing their various stages — from the steady munching of the mulberry leaves to the miraculous opening of the cocoons that would breathe out new lives.

The mulberries themselves were such a beautiful surprise, with their curly outsides that would explode into sweets in our mouths. At night we would take longer than usual washing our purply-black stained feet, before we could flop into bed, exhausted.