Saturday, March 24, 2018

Sometimes There Is Nothing More Powerful Than Silence



Can you believe that picture? The Japanese maple that was given to me by the former owner of this house at the signing fourteen years ago. That shot has no filter, no nothing. That's just what the camera saw and it is almost exactly what my eye saw, as well.

Another incredibly beautiful day and Mr. Moon, with his strong muscles and hand cart took the rest of the plants out to the porch today and I did indeed fertilize and water them. He also moved my Roseland mango from the laundry "room" to its spot outside which doubled the space in the area in which I wash clothes. Last year I did not bring it in and it froze back hard but I was patient and it was hardy and it came back again. I was taking no chances this year.

I kicked bamboo which is still coming up with its preternaturally swift growth and while I was out in that part of the yard, I took a picture of the tung tree blooms.


The azaleas and the camellias are spent and done except for a few flowers loathe to leave the branch. The wind we had the other day stripped the azaleas a little prematurely I think, but they really are only a fleeting glory which is all the more reason to cherish them while they are here. 

I girded my loins and went out to the garden and mulched from the bags my husband had collected in town. Some of the bags were so heavy that it took all of my strength to pull them down rows and rip them open and spread the wealth. They were pretty good bags, no trash in them whatsoever, and some of them had contents which appeared to have gone through a shredder of some sort and those were already starting to compost and were giving off the heat of that process. The beans are already breaking ground and I really, really, REALLY need to harden my heart and pull the arugula and the little nubs of lettuce still standing although the collards and the kale are still fine and of course the onions and the shallots are too. And Lord, the carrots are plentiful and the beets- well, I just need to pickle some damn beets and that's all there is to it. 
Next week? 
Because it is so time to put the tomatoes in, to plant the cucumber seeds, the squash. Maybe some corn, since I didn't plant potatoes this year? That might happen. And oh, okra! Because even though I made pickled okra last summer as if it were a paying job, my cabinets are almost bare of it. 

While I was pulling and tugging and spreading mulch today I was inwardly cursing, even though the day has been pretty cool and there was a nice breeze. It's just so much work and it makes me feel inadequate which is the last thing I need to feel, and I kept thinking, let it go, Mary. Let it go.
But then there's this.


Which is what I just picked and washed for the soup tonight. Look at Mr. Carrot run! Although I guess it's more of a Ms. Carrot. Yes, the garden is so much work but the pleasure of being able to go out and pick what we're going to eat for supper is just so worth it. 

After all of the bags were empty, I came in and watched the march coverage on CNN and I am so in awe of Emma Gonzalez and hell, of all of those kids, that I can hardly stand it. 
I can't even talk about what Emma did without choking up so that my words are blocked in my throat. There's something about that girl. And I'm not going to sit here and say, "Oh, she is destined for greatness," because no matter what she does after this (could there possibly be an after this?), she has already displayed a sort of magnificence that we do not often see. 
And if I were her mother, I would be terrified for her at the very same time I was completely blown away by her splendid being. 

Well. So the day has passed. 


Miss Camellia, giving me the beady little eye, trying to mind-warp me into giving her more cat food.


Another shot of the Japanese maple against the blue spring sky. 
Now THAT is what scarlet looks like. 

Peace, y'all. 
And love.
And a little more hope for the future than I had yesterday.

Ms. Moon



22 comments:

  1. Yes those kids make my heart swell!
    Xoxo
    Barbara

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    1. Mine too. To the point where I have to leak some tears. They are so amazing.

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  2. That girl/woman is amazing. I just watched her speech.

    It's heartening to see those full streets.

    Your maple is so beautiful.

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    1. You know, as one watches her, listens to her, one realizes that she is really still a girl but a girl who has also been a woman since her birth. There is no other explanation.

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  3. My parents planted a Japanese maple at our new house in 1962. I loved that tree! When they sold the house in 1988 I cried when we had to say goodbye. Oh, and I would LOVE some pickled beets! I'm the only one I know who eats them.

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    1. It's a very stunning tree, isn't it? I think that this year mine has been the most beautiful it's ever been.
      I'm going to make pickled beets this week. I swear I am.

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  4. That is one beautiful tree! Your garden sounds so lovely. It makes me want to garden! I enjoy gardening but my fear of bugs interferes. I like being a viewer of your precious life. Joanne

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    1. Do you know where your fear of bugs came from? You would never be able to live In Florida, which I'm sure you already know. I know it must be a very, very real thing and I am sorry that it is a part of your life because some bugs are just damn interesting.

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    2. The only thing I recall is that my mother made me wheel an outdoor trashcan into the backyard with 2 cockroaches crawling up the side. She was so adamant that I do this chore that she locked me out of the house until I did it. I was 5 and recall being terrified. That’s literally the only incident related to bugs in that could have contributed to my fear.

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  5. I am envious of your garden, although I'm sure it's a lot of work and it's work all year long. I get a break from my garden which makes me enjoy it all the more.

    And that young woman, she gives us all hope.

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    1. Yeah. In Florida we garden all year round but I swear- we could take summer off and it would be just fine with me. Bugs. Weeds. Heat. Not enough rain. Too much rain.
      Mostly heat, though. Mostly heat.

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  6. who's outdoing who? I need more garden beds.

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    1. And I need to get my ass to the nursery. Ay-yi-yi!

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  7. Beautiful, beautiful.

    Today's outdoor tasks for me include finish turning the compost (the chickens jumped in before I finished yesterday and I decided to let them prevail), weed all the front garden and mulch heavily. Water too, as my little beans haven't come up yet and I'm itching to plant squash.

    I think that because this year I have some long-term travel planned that I will plant some things in bags. Then I can drag them to my neighbors to be tended in my absence, and I can solarize the garden beds while I'm gone. Huge fan of the solarizing.

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    1. I'd rather pay someone to come to my house and tend my plants than to haul those heavy bags anywhere. You must be stronger than I am! I think I'm at the point with my garden and weeds that if I just put in a little effort and mulch like crazy, I won't need to worry about it too much. But yeah- I imagine that solarizing can be awesome.

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    2. If I get the 7-gallon bags, they won't weigh much more than a full 5-gallon bucket, which I can drag (actually was just filling and dumping into the compost bin, with chickens underfoot). But truth be told, my neighbors are awesome and would drag them for me if I struggle. They're small bags so not much in each one. Just enough to get me through, give me some flexibility.

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  8. You made me swoon. The two times I was in Key West I was enthralled by the crazy beautiful gardens and trees and each time you post photos of your amazing land it brings me right back. Thank you. Big love.
    Rebecca

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    1. Ah, Rebecca! We are in a completely different growing zone than Key West but we do share a few things in the biological sense. I lust after the sort of plants and trees they can grow south of here. The fruit trees! The palms! The bougainvillea! Swoon. But I am grateful for what we can grow here and thank you, sweet friend, for enjoying it vicariously.

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  9. Replies
    1. Hell yes. They shouldn't have to be in the position that they are in but they sure are figuring out what to do now that they are.

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  10. Read that they are The Obama Generation Grew up watching the way he conducted himself and are following his lead.

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  11. I'm glad the march coverage was encouraging. I didn't see it here but I'll take your word for it! Spring looks beautiful where you are!

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