My Garden

This is the season of fledglings. There are no less than eight birds’ nests around our home, and I have delighted in watching (from a distance) the little birds craning their necks upward, mouths wide open as they wait for mama bird to return with some tasty ground up worm or bug.


When we first moved here, our gardens didn’t exist. The houses in the subdivision were built on land that was once an orchard, but in the haste to create homes during the bubble, the land was denuded and what topsoil there was washed away. We have more than once complained of having to toil as Adam and Eve must have had to toil once they were cast from their paradise, but we have managed to create a bit of spacious beauty on our almost acre of land. Even though I always thought of myself as having a green thumb, I realized rather quickly that when it came to creating a garden I was certainly a neophyte, not unlike my little bird friends living in the trees that my husband and I planted six years ago. Of course, we’ve endured at least three summers of severe drought, and the red, rocky clay makes it all the more difficult for anything to thrive. I don’t think I’m likely to give up, however.

I’ve tended plants, pruned shrubs, pulled weeds, and watched my prized irises burst forth in color each spring. Last fall, I tried my hand at a rose bush. I’ve succeeded somewhat in producing blooms in the spring and fall, but the summer heat distracts it from much growth. There’s always something to do in the garden. As the birds in the nests build their strength and will soon take flight, I am going to begin to lay a path in the back garden. I’ve put down straw to mark my way, and I’m going to connect the bed with the fig tree to the new flower bed that was the vegetable garden last year. I want an English garden look, and the soil we have there must be good since we had a bounty of green beans, squash, and tomatoes this time last year. Being away for two European trips caused me to not be able to do much with that plot already this year. I’m hoping sunflowers will grow there; maybe I'll begin with zinnias and lavender. I think we’ll have to put in some azaleas up near the fig tree and perhaps some Adirondack chairs. Yes, I like that idea. Oh, and don’t forget the bird feeders. I want to encourage the chicks to hang around once they are on their own.

Whatever activity we find ourselves engaged in, we must recognize that there is always that neophyte stage when we don’t feel like we know much of anything. It’s then that we rely on others, our own insight, and the graciousness of the Universe to guide and direct our journey. In the words of poet, Mary Oliver,

“And have you too finally figured out what beauty is for?

And have you changed your life?”

May we tread lightly, learn wisely, and give generously as we explore the world outside.