I really wanted to install a new dovecote in the middle of the yard before Petka came. A sharp, well-riveted spade went deeper and deeper into the wet ground, cutting earthworms and grass roots on the move. When the leg, together with the bent edge of the step, touched the ground, I pulled a smooth handle with both hands. A whole pile of earth flew up. I deftly threw it aside - black, sometimes sprouted with white veins of roots.