Guilt Trip

It's hard to believe that I found this weed/flower so offensive

that I spent a good part of the spring

pulling it out of my garden

It seeds itself here and there

and everywhere

And I discovered that once it takes hold

it shades out any nearby perennials

A few managed

to avoid my

pull-happy fingers

The remaining plants set out

on a mission,

sending up the few flowers left,

to make me see

how badly I had misjudged them

Beacons of their Beauty

While wandering around my all-green garden

looking for something to photograph

I was stopped by the soothing sight

of their lilac hues

Each shift in light encouraged a different shade of mauve

from their delicate petals

Their beauty sent me on a downward spiralling guilt trip

for all the plants that would not flower this year

because of me

These photos capture the happiness they gave me

and I made a fresh vow to be less pull-happy next spring :)

Sly As A Fox

Oh Foxglove

You make a fool out of me every year

I smartly plant you at the back of my perennial garden

Where you languish and *fake* die

I search through my gardening books

trying to find

what I'm doing

wrong

Next year

there you are

appearing in the front of the border

where you tower over the

other plants

When I raise my finger in your direction

to issue a stern reprimand

You lower your head

sorrowfully,

eyes filled with tears

You know your way

around my rules

around my garden

around my heart

Transformation

You rise from the grass

on tall slender stems

Decorating the borders of my pond

with your carefully wrapped secrets

I could never imagine,

From what you present

to the outside world,

The beauty you hide inside

Like a mirage

you transform before my eyes

Looking back,

It was all there for me to see,

the blueprint

of your beauty

In full bloom

I can barely remember

your previous form

That's the power of

Transformation

Siberian Iris

When Times Are Dark

When times are dark

When illness strikes

Our spirits falter

And fears collide

I look to my garden

Continuing on without me

As if I don't matter at all

But that's not it

It continues on

Shining its light

To show me the way

Out of the dark

One of my daughters

A beacon of laughter and light

Has been diagnosed with leukaemia

We are devastated and frightened

But gather round her

With hope and love

With science and faith

And a magical lamp

Provided by my garden

To show me a way

Out of the dark

Razzle Dazzle 'Em

When nature puts on a show

She holds nothing back

The curtains go up

The lights flick on

The stars appear,
"Ta Da!"

Center stage in full costume

Or peel off layer after layer

In a tantalizing

Slow reveal

Colours are chosen for maximun pow!

The result is spellbinding,
magical...

You do believe in magic don't you?

This is a perennial cornflower

Or as I like to call it:

The Razzle Dazzler

Breathe

If there was one plant whose fragrance defines Spring

It would have to be Lilac

Its perfume is light enough

to catch a ride on a spring breeze

Yet so potent it fills the room

as it floats in through my open window

It is my Zen flower

with a scent that makes me stop what I'm doing

close my eyes

and slowly inhale

In that moment I am transported to another place

A smell both spicy and sweet

New, yet filled with a thousand memories

~ Heavenly ~

I missed taking photos of my large lilac trees this year

Luckily my miniature lilacs bloom a couple of weeks later

allowing me this last moment of appreciation before they disappear

Mid-Morning Pond Heron

This is supposed to be a Black Crowned Night Heron but...

I have re-named it to:

A Mid-Morning Pond Heron

(according to its behaviour at my fish pond)

I've had to re-name my fish pond as well.

It is now known as Fort Knox.

It is reinforced,

barb-wire barricaded

and tie-wrapped to a ridiculous level.

But getting back to the heron.

Here it is watching me with that oh-so-piercing red gaze.

It sends an anguished look below at the shimmering, juicy goldfish.

Followed by a calculation of its exit route through the trees.

With one flap of its long, powerful wings it shoots straight up,

right out of my camera's view.
All you see is a rather frightening view of its two clawed feet.

I manage to get one clear shot before it is gone.

You can just make out its silhouette through the leaves,
a shadowy, mystical figure,
a ghostly pond raider.

Never Forgotten

Memories blur together

Some fade away

Like the changing weather

None are here to stay...

That's the way memories go for me,

until I see Forget-Me-Nots.

How appropriate that each time I see these flowers

I think of my Mother.

They were one of her favourites.

I love their delicate, simple petals,

painted in an ever-changing
array of soft pastels.

They wander through my garden,

appearing not where I planted them

but where I most need them.

Beautiful, dependable, strong,
each center adorned with
a heart of gold;

They always put a smile on my face.

The same way my mother did.