That Spinning Rainbow Wheel

Any Mac users will get the reference.


Any PC users....well, you should switch to Mac. Talk to me then.


(Yes, Daddy, that's for you.)

I've been processing all sorts of things lately.


From my great need to develop patience and perseverance and attention to detail,

to slow down and take things as they come,

to really acknowledge and appreciate the fact that I am utterly useless and pointless on my own.

I'm learning to not count on things of this world, even when they seem sososo important to me.

I'm learning to rely on the only One who really knows what's going on and how things will turn out, and relax in the face of that understanding.


I'm also learning that grace is a beautiful thing, and sometimes it takes on surprising forms.

I'm learning these things from my garden, from my husband, from my friends, from my Thursday night gig as a barista, from my day job, and from my Bible. I'm learning that family is really about love and commitment and humility. I'm learning that cucumbers don't flourish until later in the season than peas, and that marigolds need to really be plants before transplanting them. I'm learning that I break fewer glasses when I slow down washing dishes, and that I cry less when I choose to laugh more.

These are all still works in progress. This doesn't at all mean that I've mastered any of these. But I'm processing, my little rainbow wheel is spinning (or hourglass is dumping...ugh, PC) and eventually I will be made into who I am really meant to be. And I'm learning to enjoy the journey.

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

Ok, so none of those herbs are actually in my garden. Except the parsley.

This parsley is actually from last year. The winter was so mild that he just hung out there shivering, and now he's back in full force.


My in-laws bought a new house last fall, complete with a giNORmous backyard. This backyard came with a small, fenced-in garden. After a couple hints and an outright request, they ceded control of the garden to ME.


Commence joyous leaping and scribbling of amateur garden plans.


I'm by no means a skilled or experienced gardener, but I love being outside and growing green things (especially when they become edible green things). Dan even built me some planters on our porch, like window boxes but on a porch, and I've grown flowers, herbs, and even a tomato plant last summer.

He got pretty big for living in a 5-gallon bucket ($2 buckets from Lowe's and a $5 can of reddish-sorta-terra-cotta-colered spray paint are way cheaper than huge planters), and he yielded a handful of cherry tomatoes. He was supposed to be a Roma, but oh well. They dressed up a couple salads and were perfectly delicious!


Anyways, I'm super excited to have a real garden this year, one that goes into the ground. I've spent the last couple weeks cultivating some seedlings in peat pots, and now that we're just about to the last-frost-date for Philadelphia, a few plants have met their long-term homes in my in-law's backyard.


I've got peas, cucumbers and marigolds planted as seedlings (marigolds keep away rabbits and certain bugs) and I just planted some lettuce, direct-sow style, today. This is one giant experiment, and the first time I've planted a whole garden by myself, but I'm pretty excited. I figure if I can harvest a handful of edible items it'll be a success, since I don't really know what I'm doing.


Within the next couple of weeks I'll be adding tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, onions, and maybe some herbs (pretty ones--lavender and such). I'll also plant flowers in my porch boxes, and a few more herbs that I like to use on a regular basis (basil, maybe some chives or cilantro). There's even the possibility of a strawberry plant or two!


However, it's been awesome so far. I'm totally five years old--digging in the dirt is the most fun ever.

An Ode to the Strays

Ode to the Strays

Single

Unmatched

Unloved

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper. 

One striped

One plain

One with a weird little collar

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper. 

Haunting me

Taunting me

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper. 

Little gremlins, awaiting me

Each time I fold a clean load

Gold toes

Plain toes

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper. 

Eyeless, glaring at me

Handless, reaching to find a mate

Earless, to hear my cry of despair

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper. 

Haunting me

Taunting me

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper. 

Where are their loved ones? 

Where are their matches? 

Eaten by my dryer

Leaving them alone

Hiding in the bottom of my laundry hamper.