Gayety In The Garden

Those of you who have been following my blog know that it has been a challenge this season tearing out my gardens that I have lovingly attended to for over twenty-five years. What remains are flowering shrubs, ornamental trees, and lots of bare soil needing mulch.

Not so long ago problems with my back laid me low. When I was finally up and able I found an unexpected garden gift. A lovely ripe tomato was waiting for me just outside the back door.

This week I’ve been afflicted with more spinal issues and reached out to friends for prayers that I would be well before heading out for the Catholic Writers Conference next week. Prayers are a wondrous thing…I am (and rather quickly) much better.

Wednesday I felt stable enough after breakfast to handle a hose and water the Golden Barberry shrubs recently planted to fill where flowers had once grown. Stepping out and around the front porch I found another glorious gift—and I can say confidently, one that shouldn’t have been there.

The front of the porch had been stripped of all flowers and bulbs, or so I thought. A few narrow strap-like leaves grew in the bare space. At first I thought the leaves a weedy grass, as they got taller maybe corn from seeds dropped by birds. Since I couldn’t bend down to pull them out, and chose to ignore them, the leaves grew.

That morning I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw two stalks of deep magenta Gladiolas standing next to the garden path. For those who live in horticultural Zone 6 and colder (I’m in Zone 5, pushing a 4) know that Glads do not winter over…and yet, these had. What was more remarkable is that I had planted those bulbs in 2011…not last year.

I giggled, rubbed the goose-bumps from my arms, stepped closer and touched the sturdy flowers just to make sure they were real.

What a lovely gift after four days in bed! And which of you dear friends prayed that I should have flowers?

I will be at the Catholic Writers Guild Conference that is part of the Catholic Marketing Network trade show in Somerset, NJ. With all that this entails, I will take a short break for about two weeks from my routine of blogging…there may be a picture or two from the event.

Gayety in the Garden