End of the week

We had a lovely, quiet Easter day at home.  Thankful and gratified by the eternal gift we've been bestowed.  "We are the Easter People and Hallelujah is our song."  Pope John Paul II.

I am embellishing our front porch again.  Now that I have all the furniture repainted and ready for another summer, I am now working on the flowers that will be beautifying it.  I wanted some more red flowerpots this year.  I already had a smaller red ceramic flowerpot and have always loved how it brings up that wonderful, bright pop of color and unifies door and pillows on the settee, and definitely wanted some more.  So I bought a larger one and put a hosta there.  I love the combination of the bright red with the lime green of the hosta.  I have also planted the firsts 'Impatient' plants and will be filling that flowerbed by the entrance with lots of them soon.  I love impatiens.  They are needy plants, afternoon shade and moist conditions are a must, but they are lovely fillers and I definitely want lots of them this year. 

I also bought two hanging baskets to replace the ivy geraniums that I had there last year, but unfortunately brought outside way too soon and were burned by frost.  They are the most beautiful of hanging plants too, even the name sounds lovely—bridal veil.  I have never seen type of a plant before, and they have tiny olive-green leaves and beautiful, delicate little white flowers that resemble the baby's breath, cascade in a decorative veil. 

We watched the 'darkness' for the first time this year the other evening.  We sat on the front porch and talked, and dreamed and talked some more until darkness finally descended upon our little white cottage and the solar lights were turned on, letting us enter into the magical world of night.  I can hardly wait for the firefly summer nights of June.

The back gardens are doing lovely as well.  The roses are opening up and bushes are heavy with hundreds of buds ready for the first explosion of the year.  This one here is one of my favorite: Paradise roses.  A true classic rose of form and color. The perfect 5-6" blooms (petals 30) are deep lavender edged with a lovely red violet. A truly wonderful and unusually colored rose produced on a continual blooming plant.  

Another favorite:  Ellie roses

More red flowerpots for this year...

Also need more geraniums...

The rose paths...

Soon these bushes will be so big, they will form an arch, and close that path 

love it!

The perennial Dianthus flowers.  Love them so much.  They keep the garden alive all throughout the year while the angel watch over them...  

The Fisherman surprised me the other day with the gift of the first Queen Elizabeth rose of the season...  

I love seeing the metamorphosis that takes place in the life of a rose when placed in the loveliest of small vases...  love roses in every form.

Tomorrow will be another week of crawling before I can fly at my new job.  God, such anxiety producing learning a job is... trying to absorb all the details is overwhelming. Why did I get myself into this, I have to wonder.  

Life in the cottage

4-11-17

After dinner tonight we went for a nice walk around the neighborhood. The temperature was perfect, the skies clear and cobalt in tint, and every lawn and every tree out there were painted in deep emerald. 

Coming back home after our walks it always is a delightful thing... If you're at the bottom of that last hill before reaching our home, most probably you won't even realize that our little white cottage is sitting pretty somewhere out there... for you would not be able to see it from that angle... only when you reach the top of the hill you'll then see it... like surging before your eyes out of the greenery of Nature in an almost surprising way.  

And there it'd be... our jewel of a little white cottage.  Sunk at the bottom of that same hill, engulfed by the abundance of Nature surrounding it. 

We walked straight to the garden's entrance and onto our little enchanted world we went... 

Then, we sat out there for a very long time, enjoying everything we saw and heard. We talked about our present life, and remembered our past, we counted our blessings and numbered all those dreams of yesterday, made reality today.  All of my dreams... those I dreamt of all day every day four years ago when we were living at the house in the roses, are reality today... when I thought my world had crumbled under the wrath of some very mean people, God was working on my dreams... I am blessed and astounded beyond belief.  Some people may say that dreams don't work unless you take action, but sometimes it is best if you let God do all the action instead, while you just trust him and wait on His timing.  

Birdfeeders have been filled with new goodies, and our feathered friends were coming and going excitedly, as if invited to some magical soiree.  This evening, a soloist sat somewhere in the woods and serenaded us with music I'd never heard coming from the larynx of birds...  I heard him sing a church's hymn, then it was a wedding song in a more melodic style, in which notes were sung in a most unusual fashion. His song was like a lost dream of sorts, a song about friendship, and the redemptive power of music.  Perhaps we were being serenaded by angels?  It was almost as being sitting in an Opera with the green, woodsy scenery for a background.  Birds in attires of plumes and colorful costumes waited ready to engage in fancy dances and theatrical acting, while the orchestra and musical ensemble waited for our soloist to finished.  What a treat that was!

04-12-17

I stopped at our local thrift store today after work and brought home with me the cutest dessert plates...

Roses, leaves, flowers, buds that remind me of the wonders of the spring garden.

I felt inspired to bring out some of my mismatched vintage plates and decorate the table with them,,,

Tea and cupcakes anyone?  

I went to the garden and collected the cutest little posy to embellish my table with.  

The cilantro from last year are in flower right now, and that's what's embellishing my table now.  

I love the flimsy, delicate leaves of the cilantro plant and the pretty little purple flowers it puts when the cilantro is done.  So we don't prune, and let the plant bloom...  

  

Love the scent wafting from it too!  Perfect for the kitchen.  

It opens up your appetite and bring to mind images of home 

and the cozy atmosphere of our favorite place on earth....

All is going well at my new job.  Learning a lot, and getting acquainted with the idiosyncrasy of the South, which, if I may say, it could be amazingly interesting if you're not used to it.  Never have I seen or experienced anything like how things work in the workplace around here... I mean, people from other department come to meet you and say hi, everyone seem to know you already, or have heard about you already, and they talk about you, and you'd often hear them say how fortunate they are to have you there... for them my name is "exotic", my accent ''sassy", and they want to know all about your life in those first 5 minutes they meet you. 

While talking to the HR director today he mentioned how my boss was bragging about me yesterday... They applaud when I translate, they applauded me when I got back from lunch on that first day of work, happy to see me come back... and you better make sure to offer your goodbyes personally at the end of each working day to everyone... yesterday after I clocked-out, I said my 'goodbye' as I was leaving.  The office was pretty busy at that time with people coming in and out from all directions, so I left without saying much.  The minute I got home I noticed I had a voicemail on my phone from one of my co-workers who wanted to make sure I was OK, because I'd left so quietly... was I overwhelmed?  Wow!  I was so used to come and go at my previous job without people asking me how I felt... city folks up north where we used to live are so different.  They are on guard all the time and wonder what you want when you say hello for no reason.  Everyone mind their own business and never show emotions.  Friendly, good people too, but very reserved.  You can never tell if you are appreciated.  Here they will tell you what they think without blinking.  I love the warmth of southerners.  Some people may find this meddlesome, but I like it.  They are nice 'nosy too' caring people.  And they know how to make you feel appreciated for sure.   I'm blessed.  But please wish me luck! ;) ;)

  

Light and life at the cottage

I cannot love our little white cottage more than I already do... because I do with all my heart!  Ah yes, it's a darling little doll's house, a storybook cottage and a jewel in a forest of privets, and now that part of my days are spent at the office, the few hours I get to be here are simply magical... and everything look dazzling, agleam, and clean and sunshiny-bright and ever so lovely... lovelier than ever, I should say, even when I know nothing has really changed. 

In the morning, sunshine streaming through the old 'church-style' windows inundates the living room and main bedroom in pure sheer delight.

Then, before evening falls, it is the south part of the house.  The sun hits brightly there, cascades of golden light pervading it.  Sunshine on the walls and floors, on the sheer window panels and sunshine on the large, square table... and it feels as if we have been given the gift of living light, and any other light, no matter how clear and brilliant, is pale and static in comparison to this magical light.

The grass that we sow before we left to Florida has flourished with all that rain we have had, and it has filled all the empty spaces that the relentless heat and days and days without rain of last summer left us with.  After we got home from work on Friday, the Fisherman and I went to work on the gardens.  He mowed the lawn and worked on the hedges around each flowerbeds, while I started working on removing all that weed that creeps in uninvited.  And everything is looking tidy and green--light green, deep dark green, lime green, jewel green—tones of life and exuberance, making me happy and feeling blessed beyond my imagination.  

I worked in the front and back gardens all day today; removing by hand those stubborn weeds that like to grow among the pea pebbles, happy to see while doing this that every bulb and seed I'd planted at the beginning of the year and the years before this are flourishing.  I also trimmed the vinca bushes I left in the flowerbeds this past autumn to make sure they do not re-root themselves and keep multiplying again. 

We removed some branches and dead wood from the brittle trees that grow at the edge of the woods and spoil the cultivated beauty of the garden.  And while the Fisherman worked on adding some more grass seeds on specific places, I cleaned, weeded, mulched, and sprayed every plant in the front gardens with Neem oil, then watered everything down. The Iceberg rose bushes are finally growing wider, and stronger.  They are putting out what it looks like stronger, healthier branches, and although it took a few years for this, I'm already anticipating a new life and better bushes this summer.    

I bought a couple of ferns that I'm placing on the urns in the front porch this year instead of flowers, then decided to take Mrs.Whaley's advice from her book "Mrs. Whaley and her Charleston Garden" very seriously, and threw away the old ferns that, although still alive, were looking feebly and doing poorly.  

Normally, I would have kept them and tried to nurse them back to life, as it is my instinct with plants, but Mrs. Whaley's wise advise gave me the audacity I needed to get rid of them and start anew.  I love how she puts it:  "Life is full of decisions and you better not waver and quaver over each one or you will stress yourself.  You will die young and miss your seventies and eighties, which are two decades that can be a delight".  So alas, no more wasting my time caring for plants that won't respond to my cares!  Can we do the same with people?  My heart tells me no. We need to keep trying.  "People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.  Forgive them anyway.  In the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway."  Mother Teresa.

    

I am very tired, and there's not a muscle or bone in my body that does not ache.  But I'm feeling happy, and accomplished, and I will do the same all over again tomorrow when I get home after work... work in the garden, removing, planting, transplanting, embellishing, decorating, being one with Nature, because at the end that's what gives me my peace and a sense of completeness. Gardening is hope, disappointment, joy, frustration, beauty, life, and death all rolled into one. Basically it’s like a new painting that I get to star in every year.  And I just love it!

The rains...

After an entire week under the scorching sun of FL, we are now back to our little white cottage, which, I may say, has almost been swollen up in its entirety by the inscrutability of the color green and the abundance of the woods which surrounds it.  It amazes me, this amount of life and the incredible speed in which things grow around here in just a mere week.

And thus, my little garden has thrived in my absence... it has flourished, sung mysterious songs and lingered in the abundance of branches that are now teeming with young green leaves. 

Our area is under a severe weather watch. It has been raining for days, so I hear.  This morning it rained so much, and it got so dark that it was almost frightening.  Someone must have turned off the light of day, because our little world became a shadowy, gloomy place under skies so laden with rain as I have never seen in my life.  But everything is looking wonderful in the garden, dark green is the color reigning under dark gray skies.

The little creek which separates the garden from the woods has swollen up bringing in its flow a myriad of treasures from unknown places deep within the woods.  It is running full, and it is nearly in high tide, and if I close my eyes, behind my eyelids rain would make green spirals and pinwheels, as it soaks my face ever so gently. 

All throughout the day light had carried in itself a deep green hue that makes everything look dull and featureless.  And you feel as if your world had been placed under some gigantic magical glass dome bell jar where things still grow... 

We had such wonderful, blessed time in FL with the entire family... family reunions to me are one big miracle and one of the best things on earth to build ties, cure loneliness, practice patience and strength love, affection, devotion, forgiveness, and an opportunity to grow in heavenly graces to become a better you.    In every conceivable manner, our family is our link to our past, and a bridge to our future.  Babies, children, brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers, grandparents and great grandparents. Like branches on a tree, our lives may grow in different directions, yet our roots will always remain as one.  I am blessed, and thankful for the memories built on those precious moments of last weeks.    Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life!-Albert Einstein.

Three year old Lissy and I went on a shell hunt along the beach while everyone else was enjoying the waves or swimming...  I placed our shells on one of the birdbath by the pond.  Now every time I see then I will think of my dearest little precious girl and those precious moments under the FL sun with her.   

The hostas are out, and the bird of paradise bulbs are showing up.  There's a sound, a call of a bird or a frog's song coming from the creek that enchant my ears, and make me look up from whatever is I'm doing and try to find where is coming from, and it is more like a soothing sound of water being disturb by some small creature than the sound of the creature itself.  Deep among the bramble in the wood, I discovered two black birds standing on a low branch engaged in bird conversations.  Quiet talk between themselves; caressing each other almost like lovers would do.  The natural world would never cease to amaze me.

On the very last day of March, a judge from one of the courts in our little town called me out of the blue to ask if I was interested in some job they were posting.  The day before we left for FL I had that interview. Then the following day, just as we had arrived at our hotel I received another call from that same judge who let me know I was offered the job.  Today was my first day at my new job.  For four years since we moved to the south I've been enjoying the solitude of our little white cottage, enjoying my days free of care from the outside, enjoying my freedom, and my woodsy gardens, but I feel this was a God-induced offer, and one I couldn't turn down.  So here I go again into the world.  I go out with pockets filled with smiles and good wishes, hope, faith and a great amount of uncertainties too.  But oh, I know who's looking out for me.  

"You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, LORD. You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head" (Psalms 139).