My garden refuge.
An Evening Hour
© Pearlyn
It was a sunny bright evening, an evening so calm,
The kind of evening that was inviting me with an outstretched arm.
So I decided to spend an hour doing almost nothing,
Sitting and enjoying the best of what nature could bring.
Getting up from my chair, I thought I'd take a stride
Then there was a bumble bee that suddenly came by my side.
There was a kind of music as the bee flapped its wing,
Music so perfect That no one could ever sing.
Walking little further, I spotted a butterfly
Which was hovering over the flowers and then soaring high
And I came to the conclusion as I was on my knees,
Not the richest of queens was dressed like one of these.
My evening hour in the garden was very well spent
And now I know what beauty and music really meant!!
Author's note: I planned to post this diary last Thursday 3/4/13 but my dear mother passed away a week ago today on Easter Sunday and I've been unable to devote any attention to my blogging. It was my mother's time to go. She passed peacefully. Love you Mom with all my heart. I'm now going to go to my garden for reflection, comfort and refuge. There are so many ways I find solace in my garden.
I spend a lot of time studying climate change and the many challenges we face in trying to deal with it. It can be pretty depressing at times. I need escapes to lift my spirits and recharge my batteries. One of my ways is gardening.
Being a passionate gardener Springtime is without a doubt my favorite time of year. Growth is everywhere. Different shades of newly grown green dot the landscape. The days are noticeably longer. My spirits get lifted. For me it is a time of renewal and rejuvenation.
My gardens are where I spend time imagining a world where mankind is in harmony with our natural surroundings. In essence my gardens are my escape from environmental realities.
I'm very proud of both my vegetable and flower gardens. They provide hours of comfort and enjoyment. Allow me to share.
When my wife and I returned from living overseas for 15 years our front and back yards were in need of some serious attention. I decided to put my previous landscaping talents to good use.
For an entire summer we did nothing but look for free broken concrete on Craig's List and haul it to our place in our old Ford SUV.
We searched and hauled broken concrete for an entire summer.
I dug and dug for weeks all by hand.
Meanwhile I dug and dug reshaping the yard into my vision. This picture shows the biggest project as far as moving dirt but I basically reconfigured the entire yard.
Things began to take shape.
The hard work done we began the planting phase.
Everything was done completely by hand without use of machinery. Though I was getting weary of lifting broken concrete, the construction went well and things started to take shape. There were daily aches and pains but the satisfaction of seeing the progress made them fade in intensity and importance.
In a few months the really hard work was done.
The contemplation of life area.
Now when I sit in my backyard I'm constantly reminded of the wonders of nature and of our responsibility to be good custodians of all this beauty.
Sitting in one of these seats and looking out at the gardens constantly reminds me to never take nature's beauty for granted.
Sitting in my garden also serves to recharge my batteries to regain the energy to continue the fight for environmental and climate sanity.
I'm very proud of our miniature Butchart Gardens Some pictures of the finished backyard.
Early Spring with a light dusting of snow.
Our own Butchart Gardens.
View from our patio.
My hideaway.
My other garden refuge is my vegetable garden. The previous owners used this space to park their huge RV. I often think of that super consumer use of this space when I'm harvesting my organically grown produce.
One hour spent here and I'm whistling away regardless of the bad environmental news of the day.
And the California poppies grow wild.
Hard to feel depressed while here.
And finally a shot of the front yard. We actually had a wall collapse in our front yard while we were living overseas which hastened our return.
Nature's welcome to our home.
I hope you enjoyed. Let's stop all the fossil foolishness and preserve all this beauty!
YES WE CAN!
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After a hiatus of over 1 1/2 years, Meteor Blades has revived his excellent series. As MB explained, this weekly diary is a "round-up with excerpts and links... of the hard work so many Kossacks put into bringing matters of environmental concern to the community... I'll be starting out with some commentary of my own on an issue related to the environment, a word I take in its broadest meaning."
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The Church of the Holy Shitters will post articles on our holy S.H.I.T. day ( So Happy It's Thursday)
Last post on March 28, 2013: Religion Motivates
This coming Thursday 3/11/13: The Plunger - Part I: History and Uses
Hoping to add some humor, provoke thought, spark debate, deepen understanding, and shed some light on the fecal side.
Remember: "If we really want to straighten out all this crap we really need to think about shit." ( Shitbit by Poop John the First of the Church of the Holy Shitters)
Church of the Holy Shitters
A secular environmental religion, scientifically based, with a focus on the psychology of it all. Our ego is the culprit when it comes to dealing with climate change. We cannot save the planet. We can only save ourselves. Our current egotistical self-perception makes that prospect a dubious one at best. Meekness, humility and a realization that our shit does stink, guides us on our path to true sustainable living and climate equilibrium.
Cross posted at http://holyshitters.com/