Early Morning Happiness

   Our spring-like weather has put all of the plants and critters in a tizzy.  It is wonderful!  The gardens are a happy place once again.  This morning as I ambled back up from the pier, the scent of roses welcomed me to the Small Gardens.  Ahh, the Cherokee Rose had to be in bloom!  This wild rose blooms far earlier than any of the others.  After entering the garden from the south, the arbor was in full view.  Yep, the white roses were covering the entire top!  Happy!!! 

  This particular rose was one that Son had literally pulled from the ground years ago.  He and I had wandered far back into the woods in search of the rose when I spied the canes sprawling along an old fence. Weeks before, I had made the comment that I wish some would grow closer to the house.  Never "wish" anything around Son because, if at all possible, he will make it happen.  Thus, we went on a hike and a wild rose came home with us.  

  That was some twelve years ago and I am happy to say the rose is still doing well!  It has outlasted several arbors and is currently on the newest of these.  Son had to rebuild the arbor this past year.  Termites had eaten the previous one and the one before was damaged by a hurricane.  The rose, however, withstood it all!  This morning...I smiled.  The rose brings happy thoughts of a son's love and of endurance.  It doesn't get much better...does it?

It's Charming!

  As you can probably tell by now, I am not one that obsesses over perfection.  Things do not have to meet others' standards to be ok by me.  If I have a stack of books on the coffee table, no problem.  If the chairs in the living room do not match, why worry?  If there are waning blooms on a bush, so be it.  There are far too many other things to deal with for me to get my shorts in a wad fretting over things that truly do not matter.  In fact, it was those waning blooms on the crepe myrtle bush that actually brought a smile, this morning.  I am glad I have not trimmed them.  

  You have heard me mention Pop and his impeccable gardens.  The man worked hard to keep things neat as a pin.  You would have thought that some of that would have rubbed off on me but, while I find happiness in the gardens, mine are quite unkempt by his standards.  I leave the morning glories grow where they sprout, the jasmine has wandered far too rampantly and those crepe myrtles. oh, those crepe myrtles.  (And, yes, I do know the proper spelling is "crape myrtle" not "crepe myrtle".  It is a Southern thing, folks.  We figure those crinkly blooms look far too much like the "crepe" paper for the flower to be called anything else. Get used to it.)  The crepe myrtles just keep blooming even though they are down to spindly clusters now.  It matters not.  They are still providing color to the gardens.  I shall let them bloom.

  The crepe myrtle bushes that I have are all from cuttings from the old farm place.  Pop had a row across the front of the property along the roadside.  There were probably twenty or more of the bushes all in a straight row about ten feet from the road edge.  Each year, he would prune those bushes until they were beautifully rounded little trees and then the tops would burst open in a blaze of color.  Most were of a vivid pink but there was one...one lone purplish one that grew at the very end of the row and looked sort of like a misfit in the bunch.  (Sort of like me...the misfit of the bunch.)  Today's scraggly blooms were of the purplish hue and it stood out like a sore thumb.  Why?  Well, for some odd reason, I have only one purple blooming crepe myrtle.  All the rest are that hot pink.  I did not plan this nor did I plan on my purple crepe myrtle being on the very end of a row of nine bushes that edge the garden.  It just happened.  Obviously, when I took the cuttings only one purple slip took.  Then, since the shrubs were tiny when I planted them, there was no deciphering what the colors would be when the bush finally bloomed.  Like I said, it just happened.  That unique purple bloomer would drive some folks nuts!  I find it charming.  In fact, I guess that is pretty much the way I look at things...charming.  The stack of books, the odd chairs, the scraggly blooms...they are all charming and make me smile.  That is all that matters. 

Simply Perfect

  It is simply extraordinary to think of how perfectly made each and everything on this world is made.  I have yet to find anything that needs improvement. True, some things are not as aesthetically pleasing as others but, if you truly look at the detail, you can see the precision involved in the creation.  It is that detail that makes things perfect.

  This morning, I found a tiny lizard that had obviously been trapped for some time between the window and window screen.  The poor thing was malnourished and dehydrated.  I knew just what needed to be done as the lizard would soon die if not helped.  My new found friend would reside in the greenhouse for the winter.  There, it could find plenty to eat and drink plus be warm and snug.  I caught the little fellow and headed out the back door.  With my hands tightly cupped around the lizard, I was in no position to brush off a leaf that dropped from the tree and plastered itself on my face.  I just had to "wear" the thing until the lizard was safely delivered into its new home.  Once I was lizard free, the leaf was removed from my cheek.  Wow!  Perfection!  Maybe I should have just left the leaf be and worn it for the entire day.  It was gorgeous!

  When you think about all of the wonders that surround us each day, it is astounding.  A leaf...simple yet intricately designed just like every other bit of nature...flora and fauna alike.  Folks, stop being in such a rush and take the time to admire...truly study...what is around you.  Don't take any of nature for granted for tomorrow...it may be gone.  One never knows.