All in the details

Sunday April 29, 2007

I was thinking today that when I look out the windows, there is nothing spectacular to catch your eye. Lots of green.. trees, grass, some plants, sky. I've often thought about how you see so much more through the eye of a camera than with your naked eye. What you see through that eye are the details.. the things that often get unnoticed. - These wild things from the yard are so small and yet so beautiful.

These flowers are no bigger than my fingernail.. hardly noticeable as you walk across the lawn.

A close up of a flower sometmes reveals things that I've never seen before.. the fine veining, the subtle color changes.. the fine hairs on some, the abundant pollen. I love the tiny wild flowers. So many of the wild flowers are small and seemingly insignificant, but when you look at them closely they are beautiful and complex. It seems as though that the way with our lives sometimes, also.

A tree full of oranges and blossoms smells incredible even from a distance. Close up you see how thick and almost waxy the petals of the bloom are - and how quickly after the bloom fades the tiny oranges begin.

The crepe myrtles are beautiful, reminding me of northern lilacs. Close up they have amazingly frilly petals and long graceful stamens.

We get up, go through the motions of the day, we sleep. Along the way, the details can make the difference between just another day and a day that feels ultimately satisfying..

I've been blessed to have grandchildren – now grown – who live fairly near me. I can look from a distance, or I can step in closer and see some of the fine details of their lives and who they really are. All 3 of my grandchildren have extraordinarily loving hearts. I see neighbors day to day and we seldom exchange more than a wave or hello. What lost opportunity. We don't need to know the details of others lives, but we miss out on the best when we don't get to know who people really are –

Is Spring really here?

I think Spring slipped through here in a hurry this year. We've been having upper 80's for temps already. Not nearly enough spring weather this year. It seems to have sapped my energy!

Its been fun visiting others blogs. I'm sorry to say that 'life' has taken most of my time and energy for quite a while.. I'd forgotten how relaxing it is to 'visit' someone else's garden, home and thoughts. As I read Daisy Lupin's http://catsinthekitchenflorainthegarden.blogspot.com/ entry about gardens and seeds etc, I was reminded of my grandparents.

Shopping was always special and they always referred to it as “going uptown”. From the house in the Berkshires... nearly on top of the mountain, it was definitely a downhill walk to the store, but it was always uptown. Since the population was only around 300 people at that time, it probably wasn't a reference to going to a fancy part of town. The bigger market in town had two aisles and a small meat counter in the back. Frozen foods were in two small freezers. It always amazed me that they had everything you could need in that one small store. There was another small store in town which catered more to the checker players, candy lovers and pipe smokers. The post office was also in that store. It belonged to my great grandfather many, many years ago.

'Going to town' was always an event. We normally walked over to the library – (my Aunt Jo was the librarian at the time), perhaps a walk up the hill to the cemetary to check on passed relatives.. and a peek into the windows of the Episcopal church that could only have a minister once a month. On the way back to the house we always stopped to drop pebbles into the Farmington River which crossed under the road. The background orchestra was always bees, droning grasshoppers, birds, the wind in the pines and an occasional car. Everything that a summer's day ought to have.

When I was little I could stand at the top of our driveway and oversee the town – the river, church, houses – but in later years the trees in between had grown so tall that the entire vista was blocked. I have photos taken by my grandfather before the town had paved roads. Fascinating history found in those photos. The town was settled soon after settlers first landed in Massachusetts, but everyone was driven out by Indians at one time. The big house on property across the road was filled with Indian baskets and blankets no doubt done during that time in history. My only regret is that I didn't appreciate the living history all around me at the time. Many older people who lived during the 1800's with so many stories to tell with an audience not nearly large enough or appreciative enough.

I wonder why usually we don't appreciate things of the past until we are coming to the end of our lives when there isn't time enough left to truly appreciate those who went before.

Spring Flowers

Someone sent this to me this morning and I wanted to share it with anyone who happened to visit here. Its a wonderful way to 'plant a garden' without having to till or weed!!!

http://www.procreo.jp/labo/flower_garden.swf

Thinking Capacities

Sure signs of spring !! These trees - seen with an old cracker house - dot the streets of Lakeland. We don't have forcythia (which I dearly miss!) but these trees have such a cheerful impact, they make up for them.







The 4'o'clocks are always wonderful, especially in early spring. We had so many of them where we last lived and here have a problem getting them to flourish. I would continually cut them back near our side door and they would spring back and cover themselves in blooms over and over. When I wanted to replace them with another plant, we pulled all the tubers we could find and yet they came back more vigorous than ever. It makes me think that perhaps that's how we are supposed to be. When life provides challenges, pick up that seed you have left, allow for some good weather and time and know that your life garden will again flourish.

This last picture is one one of my favirite Florida things - cows every where and a sure sign of spring is their heightened 'interest' in one another. LOL... These live near one of my daughters on the other side of Lakeland.

We still have many genuine 'cowboys' and they do have a token cattle herd through the center of town once a year. In spite of the huge population in Florida there is still so much undeveloped land filled with sod farms and cattle.


Thank you, Kerri for the "Thinking" Award. As I read your post, I was so surprised - delighted... Reading good posts always makes me think - I think its the same with a good book, or a daily devotion - they always stir us to think.

A few years ago I was wondering if my 'thinking' days were over. (smile) We had 3 hurricanes pass over us with the eye and had to evacuate twice. Until that time my paperwork was pretty much in order. AFTER that I couldn't find a thing and would joke that I thought my mind had blown away with the hurricanes. Probably the fibromyalgia "fibro fog" had something to do with it, along with adjusting thyroid medicine, but I'm happy to say the thinking capacity didn't disappear altogether.

How much we take for granted until we think we've lost it! One daughter is now handling the final stages of our corporate and personal tax returns. Until last year I used to do them for others. She two two courses with H & R Block - so I feel 'safe' in turning that responsibility over to her. I still had to gather and put into order all the information and hand her the final figures - and was amazed at how quickly I was able to do that. Sometimes we have to face a challenge to know where we are able to stand.

I've also had to handle some very difficult things for my husband recently and it makes me smile inside to realize that I'm not as old as I was feeling for quite a few months. Things still have the power to delight me in a child like way - Its been a wonderful discovery. I've also had three grandchildren.. one 18, one 23, and the other 25.. stay with us at different times on and off during the last few months. Its been wonderful and apparently helped me realize I'm not quite ready for the rocking chair. HOOORay!!!

Each year I've told my husband that I thought we ought to have a small vegetable garden again. He usually says nothing, knowing that I'll forget in time and he won't need to prepare the bed. I did notice that a new neighbor has a small garden tractor and might ask if he's for hire. Being from the north, its difficult to get the seasons right for planting in the south. So much is planted in the fall for winter gardens here - and when my system is ready for planting, its usually too late. Plants don't do well during the summer heat here. Watermelons, cucumbers, squash fare well as far as the heat goes, but the summer heat and humidity bring far too many bug problems.

Each year I try a few more things - this year I'm just starting a 'mesclun garden".. Assorted small lettuces... in a tray. I can move it to follow the shade and hope for a long relationship with wonderful salads. My yellow pear tomato plant has just started to flourish on the front porch - and is hoping for some assorted companions soon.

Thank you again, Kerri. Peace that passes understanding seems to surround me, even during times when I'm not feeling terribly peaceful. I consider it one of the gifts that comes with walking with Him... available to anyone who desires it. I'm going to need a few days to choose 5 - and probably a few more days to figure out this new blogger thing. This morning I have only 2 entries in blogger and the archives have disappeared - and I haven't yet figured out how to 'paste' into the blogger anything like the "Thinking Award". LOL !!! I haven't been reading too many blogs lately - and so must go catch up on some to choose.

Respite

April 1, 2007 April Fool's Day...

'Misti' this first picture is for you. Its from the 'vegetable garden room' at Hollis Gardens. This is the kale we grew in Maine.. Curly Kale. No matter how beautiful, no one in my family grew to love its taste. In the background was red chard.. along a bit further was a strip with reds, oranges and yellow stemmed chard.


A whippoorwill was singing first thing this morning. Its been a long time since we've heard them. Down here their song is only two notes.. Poor Will.. and so that's what they are called. Up north, its three notes.. Whip poor will.. The song was always comforting when, as children, we had to go to bed. We were told to listen and we'd find our friend there with us as we went to sleep.

The weather has been absolutely beautiful lately - nice breeze, cool air and sometimes too warm sun. Hollis Gardens is always a refreshing oasis... Today was no exception. There was one family there with 4 little girls, all dressed in swishy, swingy long pink dresses. They looked like junior bridesmaids posing for a proud, but a bit frustrated Dad. There was no label, but I believe the 4' plant with lavender flowers was a verbena bonariensis. Amazing flower! These little girls looked like a patch of brightly colored flowers themselves.

There were 7 or 8 huge staghorn ferns hanging on one of the old live oak trees. These trees live for a few hundred years and grow very slowly,, their branches almost gracefully reaching out.

I'm still feeling very frustrated with my Mavica camera. I've loved it for quite a few years, but am now quite disappointed in the quality of pictures since its less than l mega pixel. There are so many beautiful images to be captured, just waiting for me to make a decision and order a new camera. Sometimes the events of life so fill the days that things like choosing a new camera take the back burner. Perhaps it takes a few days like today with weather just begging to be enjoyed with camera in hand that will push me to order a new one. I took nearly 60 pictures today - just enjoying the variety of flowers offered.

Hollis Gardens always has unusual varieties of plants among the common, easy to grow plants. This one was particularly unusual. Its called Gomphocarpus Physocarpus.. Its common name was "hairy balls"... It was quite a large open and airy shrub covered with pale green translucent 'balls' approximately3" across, along with clusters of white and lavender flowers.



Last year there was a peach tree filled with hundreds of lucious looking peaches. This year the peach tree looks a bit haggard, but I recognized another fruit tree nearly ready for picking - the loquot. I'd never tasted them before eating at a nearly Chinese Restaurant. Absolutely delicious and nearly maintenance free.




One section of this garden is for butterfly plants. There was one huge patch of a very frangrant dark red flower head made up of many tiny florets. Upon smelling I would say it was a form of the old fashion Sweet William found up north. Amazing fragrance! Along the winding path was a section of the common nasturtium. I'd say there was nothing common about them.. One patch was a particularly brilliant carmine with the flowers held well above the leaves. There was also an anise hyssop.. about 3-4 feet tall and delicious licorice smelling foliage. One of those 'gotta haves'. This pink flower is a passiflora.. passies, I guess they call them on the Garden Web.

When I came to 'my' blogger, they had switched me to the 'new' version. I'm not sure what to expect, but did find that they only had a posting from last summer in 'archives'. I guess I'll be investigating to see how to use it. Kerri, thanks for the offer of help - I may well need it after seeing what a struggle it gave 'Alice'.

I hope each one in the colder areas are daydreaming about their summer gardens and those in the warmer areas are watching those tomatoes form and plants bursting into bloom.