Serenity Now!

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My backyard is made up of a series of garden rooms. When we first moved to our house, the backyard was sparsely landscaped with a few large trees, an old metal shed, some scraggly bushes, and an area that was boggy in the spring and cracked and dry in the summer. Over the years some of the trees died and we added a wooden swing set and a trampoline for our children. I transplanted some of the bushes to hide the shed and started planting flowers. Gradually the yard evolved into a series of garden rooms. These include a woodland garden where our deceased pets are buried; an oriental garden with a gravel floor and a hammock to rest; a French/secret garden highlighted by dwarf fruit trees; a vegetable garden with raised beds and a grape arbor created from the wooden swing set our children outgrew; an herb garden with dwarf crabapple trees and blueberry bushes, and a berm of flowers and rosebushes. The center of the yard has a small grassy area and a pond with a stream where the trampoline used to stand.

My garden is my sanctuary; my place to escape. Whenever I am bored, sad, or angry I only need to step outside the back door to find a world where worries and time are forgotten. The garden is constantly changing. It offers many distractions to occupy my time. I follow the paths from room to room, looking for plants that have recently sprouted, a blossom that has become a miniature apple or peach, or a bud that will soon open. There is always something that needs to be done: weeds to pull; trees and bushes to prune; plants to tend, feed and water. There are benches, chairs and hammocks where I can sit and read or watch the never ending activity offered by the garden. The dogs play and explore using pathways they have created. The koi and comets in the pond glide through the water, dining on insects and algae. Birds splash in the stream, flutter from bush to tree, and dine at the bird feeders. Butterflies glide by and bees move from flower to flower. Soon the dragonflies and hummingbirds will return. The air is scented with lilacs, honeysuckle and roses. The sounds of the outside world are muffled by the waterfall and birdsong. If I am quiet and listen, I can almost hear the earth breathing.

“A garden isn't meant to be useful. It's for joy.“ ~Rumer Godden
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