A little rain stirs magic in a garden. There is no doubt that ozone and rainwater are much better than an irrigation system no matter how good. That’s why all garden magazines are in love with Portland, Oregon and parts of Washington State. Who could blame them? Plants glow from within. It’s why Ireland always looks so lush and green. I’ve visited Oregon and Washington, and they’re beautiful, but I don’t think I could live there (I’m allergic to mold). I’m still vying for that visit to Ireland. One day I’ll get to the land of my forefathers, but in the meantime, I’ll just enjoy where I’m planted.
With such weather, as I weed, I occasionally glance over my shoulder expecting . . . fairies? Or, will it be one of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-Earth elves gliding around the arbor? Splendid weather inspires such fancies. I shake my head and remind myself this is the Sooner state, not Middle-Earth, or even New Zealand (where The Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed).
Perfect weather inspires the artist within. No late freeze to halt spring’s advance. No dry-as-a-bone dustiness to mar spring’s loveliness. Everything is neatly marching along, reveling in the ancient dance. Bees are buzzing. Birds are singing.
I am practically on the sidelines just watching and waiting for the next stage to unfurl.
Do you believe that last part?
Ha! That was just the garden fairies making mischief. I am truly enjoying it all, but while feeling the sun upon my face, I am also furiously weeding and mulching. I also ache from all the work, but it is pain borne of joy.
I can’t imagine how anyone doesn’t love gardening, but I meet people who don’t everyday. They look out over the back garden and wonder aloud how much Roundup I used. (I didn’t.) They ask why stuff won’t grow for them, and I feel almost apologetic because I don’t know what to say. Fortunately, my knight in shining armor, HH, rides in to the rescue. From behind Saturday’s paper, he says, “She’s out there at least an hour or two everyday, and that’s on a slow day.”
At this point, the visitor frowns, and I gently shrug my shoulders. They don’t want to do the back breaking work, and who could blame them, if that’s all there was.
I want to tell them, there is so much more.
The scent of lilacs on the breeze.
Watching toads hop from under leaf cover.
Digging a place for a new transplant and finding the ground teeming with earthworms.
How can I make them understand? I don’t care as much about the results as the process itself. Truly.
For me, gardening is a way to step out of time and mingle with all of Tolkien’s and C.S. Lewis’s imaginings. Their works of genius were conceived through their love of the natural world. Within the natural confines where we humans dwell is another place, that which Tolkien described as his Middle-Earth.
I find it when I’m on my knees.
Our lives are full of computers, files and Things Needing to be Done Now. As a writer, mother and wife, I am surrounded by deadlines and commitments, so when I can, I escape to the God-made.
Let’s all slow down and enjoy nature while she’s being so congenial. It will soon be summer, and this spring will never come again.
If you’ve never read Lewis or Tolkien, the best place to do so is before a fire with a bit of something warm to drink at hand. Also, pipe smoke and shelves full of books seem the best setting. They also wrote many works beyond those which are well known. On a cool fall evening, you might check them out.
I can so relate to this post! It’s one of the best posts I’ve ever read about why gardeners love what they do so much.
So few people “get” gardening, and quite frankly I feel sorry for them. They don’t get it and you can’t tell them about it either, because gardening is always more process than outcome. But they miss a lot of magic.
Your Climbing Old Blush looks wonderful. One of the most magical beings in the garden I think. I have one too and really love it.
.-= Sweet Bay´s last blog ..Spring rushes on =-.
Hi Rebecca, I think everyone who is a gardening can relate. It truly is about the process and not the result, but I don’t think I got that when I started. I just want enough roses to fill a vase. Way beyond that now. 🙂 ~~Dee
Dee, I so agree with you: the process itself is a big part of why I love gardening. I too want to visit Ireland someday but I also want to visit your garden!
.-= Cindy, MCOK´s last blog ..Through The Garden Gate 2010: #3 =-.
I think New Zealand is like the Pacific Northwest and Ireland as far as climate & rainfall. That’s probably one of the reasons the LOTR & Narnia movies are filmed there. I agree with Carol, so much of gardening “work” doesn’t feel like work at all. It’s more like doing stuff while communing with nature. These are the days to savor and remember.
.-= Mr. McGregor’s Daughter´s last blog ..From the DAISNAID* file: Designing with Daffodils =-.
I do too MMD. I couldn’t breathe in Portland when I was there, so I don’t know about going to these other places. Oh, I probably will.~~Dee
I love this post Dee. I too run into the people that wonder why…it is so difficult to explain. Those rascals in the garden do their mischief. Sometimes they bother Luna and make her bark for no reason. ha… Then I know for sure they are there.
Lisa, I think Luna and you are correct. I know the fairies are hiding under the leaves and sleeping in flowers.~~Dee
You are blooming quite well just where you are planted! I’ve long thought that those who don’t enjoy working in the garden shouldn’t try to have a garden. If they see it as all work, they need to quit, because you are so right, it’s so much more!
.-= nola at alamo north´s last blog ..Frozen Friday =-.
Nola, you’ve definitely got a point.~~Dee
Your post is such a nice reminder that gardening shouldn’t be a list of things to do, otherwise it gets overwhelming! I feel like I should email it to all the people I know who are just getting started!
.-= Willi´s last blog ..Using Pea Sticks to Support Peas =-.
Thanks Willi. It’s like housework, never done. Go ahead and email it if you like. 🙂 ~~Dee
That was really lovely Dee and you said so well what we gardeners feel. I love the outcome, but the process is where it’s really at for me. gail
.-= Gail´s last blog ..Yummy Buttery Yellow =-.
Amen to that.~~Dee
What a beautiful way to describe how we gardeners feel. Love all the pictures too! Have a great week!
Kelly
.-= Kelly Bundy´s last blog ..Selfish Saturday, I guess =-.
Thank you Kelly. You have a beautiful day.~~Dee
The best fertilizer, they say, is the gardener’s shadow. That’s why things grow for you and why they don’t for the frowner.
I really enjoyed your musing and thoughtful post, Dee. And yes, I’m a Tolkien fan too.
.-= Pam/Digging´s last blog ..Julie Ardery’s impossible dream come true =-.
Pam, I’m glad you liked it. I love Tolkien, so do all of my children. I think HH read them too.~~Dee
You know, I’ve never really thought of the Tolkien world while gardening but I’m sure I will now! Lord of the Rings has been one of my favorites since 1967 when I read the first of the trilogy. Once while in Wales I thought I saw Middle Earth realized (caves and mountains and streams and green with a possible dragon around the bend). But enough about Tolkien. You captured the essentials of gardening for me. It’s all about communing with nature. btw, lovely hosta combo you have there.
.-= Jean´s last blog ..Seeing Green and Other New Things =-.
Jean, I only think of it during spring when the skies are cloudy, and everything looks so lovely and green.~~Dee
Such a lovely post Dee, and of course I agree with every word. I too cannot understand non-gardeners. A woman at work said she would never plant flowers because they attract bees! Huh? I was absolutely flabbergasted, and no, she is not allergic to bees. SOOOO worth it!
.-= RobinL´s last blog ..A Garden Stroll =-.
Robin, LOL! Honestly, though, when I started gardening, I was scared of everything with wings. I also didn’t like snakes or toads. Now, quite honestly, I love them all except wasps and poisonous snakes, and I know they have their place too.~~Dee
Dee, I wish I had your way with words. You described exactly how I feel. Well written; beautifully photographed.
In your garden, I love that hosta/Japanese maple combination. Pam x
.-= Pam’s English Garden´s last blog ..What a Difference a Zone (or Two) Makes =-.
I’ve read Tolkien (and CS Lewis) inside out and backward… well, both silently and aloud anywa!… but I thoroughly enjoyed being transported back to middle earth via your lovely post. Thank you!
.-= Aisling´s last blog ..Sunday Stroll – Last Stroll of April =-.
A beautifully-written post, Dee, and I couldn’t agree more with the joy of the garden residing in the process, not product. How beautiful your garden is! The joy I feel emanating from these photos is surely not just the result of a great rain — but of you and Nature together, “reveling in the ancient dance.” 🙂
.-= Meredith´s last blog ..rainy day sunshine & ten tidbits =-.
Work? It is all a matter of perspective, like you said. I love to “work” in the garden, the smells, the sounds, the sights. I’m taking it all in, too, and enjoying it as much as I can before the dog days of summer arrive, all too soon.
.-= Carol, May Dreams Gardens´s last blog ..I Practice Multiple Types of Weeding, Sometimes All At The Same Time =-.
It’s really about the process. That, and getting the knees dirty.
.-= Brandon´s last blog ..Fruit! =-.
Well said!
.-= Sheila´s last blog ..Thanks For Noticing =-.
I am so pleased I did not miss this post it was a delightful read and lovely photos. Fancy Old Blush flowering alread and it is often the last to flower too. I have been very lax in following blogs recently too much gardening to do but yes it is heaven especially in the springtime.
.-= Joanne´s last blog ..PARHAM HOUSE GARDEN =-.
You have managed to put into words what so many gardeners have struggled to communicate. I think the biggest difference between gardeners and non-gardeners, is their ability to see and appreciate all that nature has to give. I know it is not just gardeners that appreciate the abundance of the garden. But those that can’t imagine “all that work” seem to have trouble seeing that toad, smelling that lilac, or celebrating those earthworms.
Love those white iris! All my pass-along iris are blooming for the first time this year–but they are yellow and lavender (a beautiful combination) and not white as promised! LOL!
.-= Jenny B´s last blog ..The Crossing on Chisholm Trail =-.
So lovely, Dee. Beautiful garden, and photos. Lots to ponder…
.-= Jan (ThanksForToday)´s last blog ..The Multi-Hued Greens of Spring =-.
Dee your garden truly inspires me. I have a split log fence (of a sort) around my backyard and seeing what you’ve done with yours inspires me. Maybe I can slowly begin to work on it this year.
The rain is really wonderful in so many ways. I’m always happy to see it (instead of snow!)
.-= Kathleen´s last blog ..Narcissi nirvana =-.
Your garden is beautiful.
People who don’t garden just never understand. It’s not really work….it’s what we love. The sights, the sounds, the smells…..gardening is good for the soul.
Maybe that’s why a garden is never really ‘done’. There’s always that ‘one more’ thing we have to add, or a complete remodel.
Thanks for the tour.
~~Linda…
.-= Linda/patchwork´s last blog ..Did Someone Say Yard Art??? =-.
This is dreamy and beautiful and gorgeous! You inspire with each turn of phrase, with each turn of the shovel. What a beautiful world you have manifested!
.-= TR´s last blog ..Sunset at Selman Ranch =-.