10 Things Making Me Happy

It’s been such a beautiful start to fall, and before I left for Utah and points west, I put together a photo list of some things that made me happy that week.  I'd gotten a little frazzled finishing my artist talk for the book reading, and I had a million things to do to get ready for the two week trip.  I thought it would be good to slow down and pay attention to the things that made me smile.

1.  The bookmark I made for my Dad a looong time ago, found in my family’s dictionary (which I finally unpacked and made a good spot for).  Yeah, ok, it made me sad too, but mostly it made me happy.  I love that my Dad wrote the date on everything he saved, because now I don’t have to guess when I glued that heart to the popsicle stick.

2.  Another “finally:" I'm starting to hang up some of my parents’ artwork on my own walls. I grew up looking at all these beautiful prints and paintings and it’s good to see them again.

3.  My newly planted anemones, blooming before hunkering down for the winter.  I think they are my favorite flower.  

4.  The Champ is in the air again!  I learned to fly in this magic plane, and now I own it! (Well, part of it, but more about that in another post.)

5.  Very tiny pinecones that made their way to the patio.

6.  Morning glories winding their way through the patio doors.  They’re on the north wall, and it took all season for them to get up the gumption to flower.  Note to self: plant them in more places next spring.

7.  Waking up with Miss Kid.  Under a down quilt.  Snuggly!

8.  Last tomatoes of the season.

9.  A sense of accomplishment!  I finished up my artist talk for my book reading out in Utah. 

10.  First bath of the season. Need I say more?

So what's making you happy these days? 

My First Garden

My first apartment had a tiny backyard garden that was tended to by my elderly neighbor. It was paradise: a little patch of soft grass surrounded by lush foliage and small trees. I loved it out there. I always think better outside, in the green. And it made me dream of having a garden of my own one day. 

We moved into our condo (which feels more like a little cottage) last summer and it came with not one, but two private patios with French doors and plenty of earth to play with. If I couldn't have a fireplace, then French doors opening out to secret gardens would be a perfect second choice. The previous owner hadn't done much in the way of landscaping.  What was there was haphazardly planted and — my guess — was probably what had been on sale at Home Depot. I wanted to wait the season out to see what grew over the summer and fall before planting anything, and while that didn't make for a beautiful garden last year, it gave me a chance to really think about what I wanted things to look like. 

Just arrived!  Lavenders and grasses from High Country Gardens.

This is my first experience tending to plants that aren't in pots, and so far it's been working out nicely.  I love my patio gardens for what they're evolving into. I can now hang string lights in my trees!  I feed the birds (and squirrels and chipmunks), and on nice days I take my office outside to work under the umbrella.  Sherman and Miss Kid often join me.

I've been photographing things in black and white too, which makes me happy.  Gardens are so full of color, but there's something about catching their quiet moods in monochrome.

At first I was nervous. I'm pretty good at keeping house plants alive, but outside gardens seem like professional territory. Fortunately I remember the encouraging words of Gayla Trail, author of my favorite gardening books. She says something to the effect of “Don't worry so much. Plants want to grow." Somehow that gives me great comfort! And it's true: even the old plants I ripped out and piled in a corner for the compost bin have continued to thrive despite my complete neglect. I am impressed!

I'm finding out that - like a lot of other things in life - keeping a garden is really mostly about paying attention. I start the morning and end the day saying hello to the plants. It always amazes me when something changes!  Overnight, the hibiscus tree has an insane amount of flowers! ... the green bean seeds sprouted...  there’s a tomato nestled in the leaves that I didn’t notice before.  Best of all is picking my own fresh herbs for cooking. My fingers smell delicious all day. 

Sadly but inevitably, I had my first garden casualty: Sherman got hold of a shrew (I had to do some research to find out what it was... not quite a mouse, not quite a mole, not quite a vole...) and he apparently played with it too long.  I buried the little guy under the ferns in the front garden...

I am told a garden is never finished. I suppose how can it be? It’s a living thing, and there will always be something to do, to weed out, to transplant or switch around.  I have to let go of wanting to feel "done."  It will always be a work in progress.  I have ideas for what's next but I want to give this year's plantings a chance to settle in. There's no rushing a garden, I'm already finding out, but that's becoming fine with me. 

p.s. - Did you spot Valentine (my little green bird) in one of the photos?

The Bachs

Prior to our Venice trip, John and I were able to spend a few days visiting my German "family," the Bachs, in a little town outside Frankfurt.  I hadn't seen them in over twenty years, and with my Mom and Dad both gone now, I felt a pull to see everyone again.

My brother and I were both born in Germany.  My father, an architect, had been transferred to Frankfurt and even though my Mom had relatives in other parts of the country, the Bachs became our adopted German family.  I wondered how much had changed since my last visit— as it turns out, not too much.  The kids I played with when I was younger have grown up and now have kids of their own.  Everyone stays close.  And the minute I walked in the door I remembered everything:  our parents' dinner parties, my first Nutella sandwich, shelves of books, the secret garden, and the hilarious plays we kids would put on for the grown-ups.  Good times!  It felt like coming home.  Twenty years will not go by again.

Katja and her paintings.

Klaus building miniature cities.

A few scenes from Elke's garden...

The gang on our last night.

"Schokoladen Spiel" (the chocolate game).  Players roll dice.  When you get sixes, you put on a hat, scarf, and mittens, then use a knife and fork to open and eat a bar of good German chocolate that's been wrapped in several layers of newspaper and twine.  All while the dice are being rolled again...  My favorite game EVER because your sides hurt so much from laughing.