Day in the Life of the VWWIT (Village Wise Woman in Training)

Knock, Knock, Knock

Philly: "Someone grab the dog, it's the neighbor!"

Neighbor holding what appears to be herbs: "Can you tell me what this is?"

Philly looks at first bunch then sniffs it. "This is sage."

"I can cook with this?"

"Yes. You have quite a bit there. I would take some and dry it also."

Neighbor hands her the next bunch.

"This is rosemary. These are very nice herbs, where did you get them?" Philly asks, wondering if her neighor has a secret garden somewhere.

"My husband brought them to me."

"Nice!"

The neighbor thanks Philly and runs off to try out her new prize.

Philly closes the doors and smiles.

She loves her job!

Spring time on the 'Farm'

Well, this farmgirl is trying to keep herself busy with some of the things that bring her joy so here are some pics of what I have been up to of late. As long as I can play in my garden with my flowers, spend some time knitting and with my spindles, I am can maintain a relatively level amount of sanity. ;-)
Here are some pics of my flowers and some other spinning I have been doing. (along with the other post on the Turkish Spindle.)

My bleeding hearts are the first to greet me in the spring. The lavender in front of it has lots of new growth and I am very fond of it.

I just adore the faces on pansies! I plant the whole bed with them and enjoy them all of spring being careful to pinch back as needed. The cool spring has kept them quite happy.


Along with finally getting the hang of my Turkish Spindle I have been busy with my top whorl Louet.

Philly is Ramblin' again...

I love gardening, especially flower gardening. I know it is not practical at all, unless you plan to live on a diet of nasturciums and pansies. But flowere make me so happy and I love to pick them out. Gentle empathetic pansies, sweet sprawling forget-me-nots, and even plain but colorful petunias make it into my garden. They are all different and all beautiful to me. They all serve the purpose of making my world more lovely and happy. I don't care much for the well manicured-tidy-everything- in-it's-place-garden. I much prefer a cottage type garden with flowers carelessly strewn about to create a more natural look.

So what is the point? Well, I kinda figure we are all like that. We are all just a flower in G-d's many gardens. Corny I know, but I think in pictures and colors so these things work for me and help me to understand. Some of us like being in the well manicured Longwood Garden of life. I like being among the wild flowers or the cottage garden. I sometimes even feel like a lone bloom out in the desert growing from some long forgotten dirt in a rock. It's isn't that I don't appreciate the orderly gardens. I think they are amazing and sometimes think of joining them, but my roots get choked very quickly by their limitations. Mind you, thier limitations, not the Master Gardener's. No, not His. Although He does have a very clear gardening method, He does allow me and seems to even encourage my free spirited growth. It is after all how He planted me.

Some may say this is not normal. 'Stay in your row!', they cry. I saw rows are for vegetables, not for flowers.

What is normal after all? I read somewhere that it was just a setting on the dryer.

Especially when it comes to this mandate I have heard about concerning 'fitting in' with your local community. I suppose if your community is a Heirloom Rose Garden, being a wild rose could have it's drawbacks. Maybe you would even be considered an eyesore. I suppose...

But then again, you never know. The Master Gardener would never place a flower just anywhere. No, everything is growing in that place for a reason. Nothing is growing by accident. Maybe, just maybe, that tiny wild rose among the Heirlooms brings the Master Gardener so much joy for growing and being nothing more than a wild rose. Maybe the Master Gardener placed it there so it would get good soil and grow stronger. Perhaps very soon, the Master Gardener will take His shovel and gently transplant this wild rose among other wild roses. Yes, perhaps the Master Gardener is just waiting for the wild rose to mature a bit more and will soon (PLEASE G-d), very soon transplant it to a more suited garden on a mountaintop. Meanwhile while the wild rose is waiting she should always remember to Bloom Where You Are Planted.

Just a pinch of garden envy

Today I was out and saw the loveliest garden. It called to me in such a way that I had to come home and weed a bit. I have not had time or finances to make the garden as nice I would have liked to this year. It saddens me to have to admit this. Since I do not have land as such, my small bit of earth has been a real labor of love the past couple of years. I really enjoy getting in the dirt and planting. The smell of earth can be quite relaxing, a gentle reminder to reconnect. Fortunately I do have a nice amount of lavender growing. I enjoy looking at other folks gardens, they inspire and comfort me. But still, I can't help but wish, just a little, that I could have worked on mine this year. Oh well, maybe I will plant lots of mums this fall.