As The Children Rest, I Reminisce ***

This day is winding down and all is calm, quiet and totally peaceful for the time being. Soon noisy chaos will begin for more 'children' are coming. My new four legged children, Choco and Dapple aka Hope have settled in on their thick pad laid against the picture heater at the end of the desk. As long as I don't move, they don't either. I'm really surprised how quickly they have taken to their new home, happy and settled down within the last 12 hours. They finally started romping with each other today. I was surprised to see this but there was a reason for the playing. Anna (she's my eldest daughter) had arrived a few moments before. Dapple Hope (This is the name I've just this instant settled on) grabbed my neck pillow and went wild with it. Taking it from her, I then tied a knot in an old sock and away she went with Choco in hot pursuit of it.

Anna had arrived with a bag of books and the dogs became so excited, joyous in fact, greeting her like a long lost friend. Choco immediately saw hers as a perfect lap to leap upon then began showering her with kisses. Heck, I'm jealous. She is a full blown animal lover and they knew this instantly. How so, I wonder? They acted just like children who are excited and start showing off when new company visits.

After awhile I corralled them so we could be outside to dig a bit. Anna now has another chore to add to her daily thousands, as I gave her a lot of jonquils. Thaddeus will be with them the weekend so he can help plant. If Thatcher comes also though, there will be no bulb planting. Terry suffers with a broken foot; had a bad fall at work and two more when on the way to the hospital a few days later. A couple of weeks ago with both of them, Anna never had one moment for anything else. But the little one was fretful then.

I don't know where she might plant them for no one has as many beautiful plants and flowers as she does. Their yard is a picture. The weeping cherry trees, the lilac bushes, the butterfly bushes and all the plantings around the fish pond - gorgeous. I wait in anticipation to sit out back near the fish pond. There is plenty space to put jonquils but they will be in danger of the mower or weed-eater soon. Continuously cutting them down finally wipes them away. I was speaking to her of all the tulip bulbs she gave me during the highway construction back in 2000 and how I left them to dry too long and they shriveled within their skins. This was regrettable.

Several years ago, I dug over 500 bulbs to take with me when I moved from one home. Renting for some time and moving several times the bulbs never got planted. Forgotten among all the packing boxes. Dumb me! I didn't have sense enough to know that bulbs dry and disappear after some time, so I lost them all. A once former owner of that particular home had belonged to a garden club for many years and you can just imagine the many varieties of flowers and plants we inherited on buying that property. I still miss that place so much after thirty years. There never was or has been a home I liked as much. It was also haunted; really it was. That is a story that stands alone on its own! Update: story over on other blog, "Hey, Let Me Tell You a Story"
I will have jonquils blooming tomorrow. I saw a few this afternoon ready to burst open and my Autumn Maple is in full bud, so any day now its leaves will unfurl. The willows have turned green this week and I watched the grass getting greener through the day while I sat here near the window one day this week. And my 20 varieties of Day Lilies are growing fast.

Walking the dogs over the whole place today, I saw the profusion of them and need to get some of them separated and potted and ready for Farmers' Market which will soon open. Amazing, isn't it, how fast nature changes - like overnight! It all depends where each of you are located but if spring hasn't begun at your place, it definitely can't be too long coming. The patch of jonquils I saw on the Edifice Rex blog were beautiful. I bet out of the eye of her camera it is total flowering profusion today for she lives much farther south than I.

I wish to be a powerful bird and fly the world, glorying in all the beauty we have upon our tiny blue planet. How confining at times to be just human, without wings to soar over it all.