Once upon a time I saw a cute little sign that said “Gardening is the Slowest of the Fine Arts.” I had never thought of it that way, but isn’t that the truth?! I’ve always been creative, taking art classes all through my childhood, but in recent years my creativity has been channeled more through …
When time is whizzing and life’s a frenzy, when dark clouds hover and troubles surround me,to the garden I must go,where my friendly flowers grow. While I’m digging in dirt and pulling weeds,pruning, watering, and planting seeds,the daffodils nod their bobbing heads in agreement with whatever I just said. And just look into Pansy’s pretty face,her …
Do you like watching paint dry? Actually, I do. That expression usually refers to something boring, but when you’ve been dreaming of having a new laundry room for years, it’s far from it. When the time finally came, I got to think through all of the different tasks I’d want to use the room for …
To blog or not to blog I started this blog nearly three years ago on my 53rd birthday. My husband and I were beginning our transition into the empty nest and I had no idea what life held next. The blog was a way of sharing that transition with others, as well as working through …
I inherited my interest in writing from my mother who has written many things over the years. I think she might have enjoyed blogging, too, if the technology had been available in her earlier years. This fall, I had the idea to write about her experience with integration while attending Little Rock Central because it …
Our house has needed a makeover for a very long time, but even as I longed for it, I imagined workmen tromping around on the plants that I’d been nurturing. Any time my husband and I’s conversation turned to the subject of this outdoor project, I started talking about the limited time frame that I …
My family has a Christmas tradition which started with my paternal grandmother. At Christmas she would make a little goodie bag for each member of her family and put small treats in it. Hers included things such as a few pieces of fruit, some nuts and candies. My family has continued the tradition, but the …
Are you familiar with the Broken Window theory? It was authored by two social scientists, James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling, who basically asserted that each problem that goes neglected in an environment affects peoples’ attitudes toward that environment potentially leading to additional neglect, or worse. We’ve lived in our current home for over ten years. …
During this summer while it was so hot and dry, I had an itch to do something, but was afraid that anything I might try to plant would be doomed. I had been eyeing my birdbath for a very long time, considering turning it into a planter. It was a gift for my first Mother’s …
This gardening season has been particularly discouraging for me. It’s normal for me to feel this way in late summer, but this year it started much earlier, in spring. While dwelling on the details, I realized that oddly, they all started with D. Death To begin with, there were plants that should have come back …