Working in my garden...

One of the greatest joys I have in this world is working in my garden.  I love the feeling of the earth in my fingers.  I love the satisfaction I get from leaving something better than I found it.  I love having a part in the creation process.  I love the sense of independence I get when I help provide food for my family.  I love the visual feast I get everytime I pull into my driveway:  dahlias, dianthus, nicotianas, echinacia, petunias, artichokes, hollyhocks, sunflowers, zinnias, carnations, gerberas, roses, yucca, red hot pokers, sage, lavendar, mint, spearmint, chives, lilies and more...oh, and did I mention grass?!  I love my grass :) 

All those years of thinking Bryan's dad was crazy for hauling load after load of manure into the yard, all I can say at this point is 'Thank you, Dad!'  He had such a gift for making anything grow.  Marigolds and petunias are supposedly annuals, but our soil is so rich, they reseed themselves every year in our flower beds.  That is the miracle of Dad.

My own dad was much the same, and had the gift for creating beauty..  He loved being in the yard and digging in the dirt.  I knew the time to move was approaching when he would run out of projects in the yard.  It was like it was his way of beautifying the earth...one little house at a time :).  I think if he were here, he would love to stroll through my yard with me, marveling as each new little sproat finds its way through the black crust of earth.  Lucky for me, Bryan enjoys, or at least tolerates, those strolls :)

I had a lady stop the other day while I was out working with the kids and say she had driven down this street for years but she had never noticed our home until this summer.  I have to think she must not have seen it when Dad and Grandma Mary had the yard in it's prime, but still, it makes me feel good to know Bryan and I have had a little part of improving something.  I love my little corner of the universe.