What today brings...
Posted 1/13/12
Yes, the days are longer and it is the start of a new year. I'm certainly grateful for all the sunny days we've been enjoying. It's so much easier to start something new when the days are bright and full of light. I'm watching the kumquats get more and more orange. I can hardly wait!
Many, many changes this year and I hope all will prove to be good. There seem to be fewer sad or tragic stories so perhaps we've turned a corner. Among the things on my resolution list is to make at least one thing a little bit better every day. So far, I've managed to get some long overdue cleaning projects finished and some organizing projects as well. Garden management takes me considerably more time now, but so far, I've been able to be organized about it and to keep on top of things. Plants are so much like humans; they want to thrive.
I still am living a bit in the hibernation mode, but will have to become more sociable soon. It's felt so good to just be 'quiet' and think. I'm anxious to see who will come into my life this coming year. I'm beginning to anticipate the adventure of new acquaintances.
Posted 12/10/11
As sentient beings, we contemplate our personal spirituality and humanity on a daily basis. Therefore, at this time of year, it might be appropriate to express appreciation for some of the physical manifestations that support those values and beliefs.
For most of my life I hated autumn & winter. Everything dies! It depressed me to see the advent of darkening skies, cold temperatures and short days. I would dread the effort to get through all the dreary months until spring.
In recent years because of my garden, I've found a new appreciation for this season. If you're a gardener, you understand we're not in control, but are merely custodians of the space. At some point along my way, it has taught me to pay attention. For one thing, oranges and lemons produce their amazing vibrant flavors during this time. Picking the first ripe oranges in December is one of the most exciting experiences there is...at least as exciting as the first ripe tomato in summer. Perhaps of greatest significance is the more subtle lesson of resting or 'dying' and renewal or 'rebirth'. A perfect example of this is only one crop of peaches each year. Life cycle...a rest period...If the tree doesn't 'die' in winter to be 'reborn' in spring, there would only be one crop ever!
Now when fall arrives, even I seem to be able to breathe more deeply and feel more relaxed. It's time to rest.The aromas change from the hot and dry summer scent of oak to the cooler fall scent of decomposing leaves and the pungency of the herbs as they produce seeds. I now anticipate the time my garden takes to rest and rejuvenate. Yes, winter is still cold and dark, but I can look forward with more peace because beginning in January there will be the first tulips, then lilacs, then roses and so on...
We need this time to rejuvenate as well. So many people at this time of the year seem rushed, stressed and overwhelmed with everything they try to manage. It might be time to think about this rather as a time for quiet, peacefulness, contemplation and re-evaluation of our accomplishments and values. We all know new year's resolutions seldom stick. What if that's because we don't give enough time to think through what's important and how it fits into our lifestyle? I've started taking my rest period between Thanksgiving and the first of the year. I spend it as a quiet time, for reflection and understanding.
This year at this season, I wish you peacefulness of mind, relaxation of body and rejuvenation of spirit.
And I wish you the joy of knowing that as the shortest day of our year passes, each new day brings more light, and every living thing will bear new fruit. Celebrate! View Card
Posted 11/25/11
Hmmm...it's been quite a long time since I wrote anything here. This has been an extraordinary year in nearly every way. A few of the things that come immediately to mind...
Sleep deprivation; Foxy, my last little girl cat at 18 was discovered to have chronic kidney disease. Not uncommon in elderly cats, but coupled with her thyroid condition and IBD made caring for her unusually challenging. She was never a good eater, and these combined conditions led to severe loss of weight. For the past months, I've been up every few hours during the night to feed her. It was hard for us both.
Spring cleaning; After years of inactivity due to a dis-functional website and months of trying to use eBay, we finally re-donated all the used shoes and accessories from 'that old business' to local thrift stores, mostly Pick of the Litter. What a relief to have so much space again. Clutter makes ones mind so...sluggish. We found a way to discard other old 'stuff' as well. There's a sense of newness when you eliminate that which is no longer used or useful. Of course, some things were simply put away in case at a later time in life they may be wanted.
Growing things; I've been studying herbalism and wild foods for the past couple of years and this year decided to try my hand at plant propagation. I have been growing summer vegetables and herbs from seed for years, but this was the year I decided to attempt other types of plants and ways to propagate. I haven't branched into grafting yet, but perhaps at some point... I successfully slipped several fuschias and some hydrangeas. Frankly, I started this because I didn't want to spend money on new plants. These worked out so well, I'll definitely be doing more next year.
I also discovered some amazing techniques to maintaining my summer green beans. This year I began harvesting in May and I'm still harvesting here in November, near December. Location plays a part, but I discovered a home made spray for the spider mites and white flies which infest the plants in summer heat. They typically lead to plant death, but the soap spray combined with a new mid-summer feeding of alfalfa meal completely re-invigorated the plants. They're still producing new leaves and blossoms! I don't know how long it will last, but it's a tremendous thing to discover these techniques. And love the beans!
Posted 6/27/11
I picked my first zucchini yesterday. It's a variety called Romanesco which really does taste better than the regular dark green ones. It's ridged lengthwise with lighter green.
The early tomatoes are full of flowers and the beans are nearly ready to get away from me. The garden is really beautiful this year. Thank goodness we've had some warm weather to make things go.
Posted 5/16/11
We need to do better. It's time we start making the right choices, rather than simply deciding to patch broken systems.
A Deficient Approach and A Small Revolution.
Springtime!
I took this photo of an arrangement I did in the beautiful basket my friend Alex brought me on Thanksgiving. The arrangement reflects springtime in my garden.
Posted 3/21/11
I stumbled on this yesterday and think it's worth the read. We should all pause to consider for a moment.
Healing Wisdom for Today.
Posted 2/7/11
This past weekend was spectacular! It was warm and sunny and very productive. I managed to accomplish a good deal of work in the garden. I also started some pepper seeds. Last month I picked our small olive crop and am working on brine curing them. This week I'll be able to sample one to see if it's fully softened. So far, this year is looking bright and better. We have another huge orange crop this year. They seem to taste better every year. It's such a delight to have citrus crops which hold the fruit for lengthy periods unlike Peaches or the like which mostly need to be used up all at one time. Luckily this year, we have lemons, limes and oranges all together. If only I could get the kumquat to be more productive...
Posted 12/31/10
Again we've reached the final day of the year. I realize there are individuals who decry the marking of milestones, but it's a very important practice in my own life. For those of us who do mark these milestones, we embrace the passing of time. One of the things I enjoy most about New Year's advent is the name "New Year". New; renewal; move forward; fresh...I do often develop a list of things or attributes I want to manage in the coming year, but often they are things like 'do more nice things for more people', or 'keep the house a bit cleaner'. Maybe my list this year will be more task specific and compelling. I already have at least one. My raised bed vegetable garden is going to be better prepared early and with luck, the weather will be more conducive to the season. I've spent a bit of time today preparing for use the herbs I dried during summer. Working on this type of long-range project is curious. It's made me consider what this new year might be like, as well as how lucky I have been.
Posted November 2010
The past three years have been complicated in so many ways. Such huge events have knocked us around. An old friend passed away in early 2008 and it was surprising how overwhelming that loss became...and how influential it became afterward. Then George came back to us in November 2008. That was simply stunning. Most recently, a family crisis in summer of 2009 capped off this series of tragic incidents that I think many have never had full recovery. Sleep is often elusive. It's hard to keep my thoughts straight and frankly, I probably still have too many brain-less days. I'm looking forward to a psychic revelation about how to move through. In the meantime, I keep moving in what seems like a forward direction, while trying to maintain passion and pleasure in life and my world.
Posted September 2010
Moving forward under extreme circumstances is hard. Each day is a struggle to make a tiny step forward in the unchartered territory of my future. There is no guidebook for managing the experiences of my recent past. Nor is there a guidebook for how to cope with or structure the future. I know change is necessary, but although I often feel the change needs to be of everything, I realize that's too extreme. The whole thing reminds me of a quote I recall from an old movie: "It's not hard to do the right thing; it's hard to know what the right thing is." Hopefully I can soon progress on this path better than I have so far.
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