In the garden

Few things are more extraordinary to me than sleeping in the garden on a summer’s day.  Waking up under the canopy of trees that shrouds my little sanctuary is like being in a fairytale written by God’s fingers.  It’s like finding myself all of a sudden in a meadow of tiny flowers sprinkled with stardust, and fields of Queen Anne's lace dazzling in sunlight.  It is like going back in time just to find the little puffball-pink clover flowers that glittered above the pasture where I grew up.  But this is only January, and the garden has yet to cuddle up some more…    

Our disposition can easily be affected by what we see or what’s going on around us.  Our thoughts and consciousness become absorbed in negativity fairy quickly.  How marvelous and wise, to focus my thoughts into what’s ahead in the season in times like these—a garden brimming in all its wonderful and soul-healing glories.   

Ah yes I believe that southern girls are not saved from the ‘spring fever’ bug… It must be contagious, I suppose.  Or maybe is just that we don’t live south enough for all that year ‘round summer weather I allegedly thought we were going to see here?  Like you Florida gals down there!   Is it nice and warm where you live?  Do you have any flowers blooming yet?

I’m learning patience as I live my little life, but I’d have to admit that thus far I haven’t entirely mastered such graces yet.   So I was out there a few days ago planting my summer bulbs in a 40 degree temperature… delighting in lingering sunshine.  Yes, because although it sounds cold, here the sun shines in some miraculous ways, and after a while it warms up and sunshine does this thing to your body and soul and in no way you want to go inside and miss all that…

I planted all my Elephant Ears bulbs by the pond area and some by the creek at the edge of the garden.  The Oriental lilies are now planted in the shady garden along with all the hostas I have there almost ready to wake up on any given day now…  I can't hardly wait!

I’m also almost done with all the spring cleaning.  Can you believe it!  I’m amazed just at the thought of being able to be outside in January… goodness me!  And to think that planting anything that wasn’t in the form of dreams was not even an option just a year ago!   

 And now… being outside submerged in Nature already!  It truly is unbelievable, and grand to me.

I am a worshiper of the sun in some mystical sense, as you can tell, and I find this sun of the southern hemisphere just glorious in every season.  Well, perhaps not that much in summer time, but comes winter time and all that heat of summer is forgiven in a huge way.

The hydrangeas outside the tall windows of our sunroom are bursting with life.  You can see the fist leaves crowning what it looks like dead wood in the prettiest lively green.  It amazes me—this unexplainable, miraculous force called life.  I’ve been also doing some painting outside… again yes yes!  It seems that painting my little garden’s accessories, like flower pots and mirrors and benches and stools and doing my best to create color  is a true yearning of my heart… so I gladly engage in doing this each year.   

My husband is very good at telling me what he likes and dislikes and pretty much dissents with my taste in garden decorating… ha!  He believes that my garden is looking already like a junk yard with the many things I keep there… He always feels this way around this time of year when winter would uncover my little treasures and let them be seen in full sight.  But what a lovely place this is when again, trees and shrubs and flowers are kings and queens.  Discovering with the eyes all these little treasures secretly tucked along the pathways it truly is a delightful thing… 

 I hope you all have a super beautiful day!

....Oh oh and look what I found this morning!!

 Ciao!