Tag Archives: gardening
Flowerbeds with edibles
“Creating your own urban farm is as simple as planting your flowerbeds with edibles.” — Greg Peterson Given my failures at trying to keep the squirrels out of our tomatoes, I tend to doubt that it’s as simple as Peterson makes it sound. Still, I find the idea intriguing. I don’t want to give up my …
In the yard
“My father used to play with my brother and me in the yard. Mother would come out and say, ‘You’re tearing up the grass.’ ‘We’re not raising grass,’ Dad would reply. ‘We’re raising boys.’” — Harmon Killebrew This is a perfect time of year for this quote. The All-Star break is coming up, and many lawns …
Our gardens — our wills
“Our bodies are our gardens – our wills are our gardeners.” – William Shakespeare The more I think about this analogy, the more it holds up on several different levels. Gardening is not easy; it involves no small amount of dirt, sweat and failure. But the rewards, which go beyond the final results each year, …
In a garden
The kiss of the sun for pardon The song of the birds for mirth One is nearer God’s heart in the garden Than anywhere else on earth — Dorothy Gurney I don’t know what it is about Canada, whether it’s the climate or the eagerness for warm weather or the souls of its people, but …
A garden and a library
“He who has a garden and a library wants for nothing.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero Several weeks ago one of our readers sent me this quote, and I immediately thought “That would make a great post for the blog.” What makes the quote so appealing is that most people can have at least a small library and …
Expect nothing
“Expect nothing. Live frugally On surprise.” — Alice Walker It may seem contradictory for a self-proclaimed optimist to quote Walker’s counsel to expect nothing, but there is very real difference between expectation and optimism. Admittedly, optimism involves some expectation, but it is mostly of a general sort. We expect that joy lies ahead if we …
Diligence and labor
“He who labors diligently need never despair; for all things are accomplished by diligence and labor.” — Menander People often say that women marry their fathers, but in most ways I think I married my mother. My husband is so like her, especially when it comes to enjoying work. I like to joke that if …
Try adding some bright
“Your attitude is like a box of crayons that color your world. Constantly color your picture gray, and your picture will always be bleak. Try adding some bright colors…” — Allen Klein I appreciate people who take the time to add color to everyday life. Some people plant bright annuals that bloom in spring and …
Ways of healing
“A woman’s heart always breaks a little in the spring. But spring offers its own ways of healing. Hoe the row a little deeper. Kneel on the ground and dig the roots.” – Marjorie Holmes Even when the heartbreak is more than just a little, spring does offer a degree of healing, however inadequate it may …
The tiniest fragments
“Somehow, even in the worst of times, the tiniest fragments of good survive. It was the grip in which one held those fragments that counted.” ― Melina Marchetta “The NPS said that about 50 percent of the cherry blossoms survived, but now that we can see the flowers coming out it looks like that is …
Flowerbeds with edibles
“Creating your own urban farm is as simple as planting your flowerbeds with edibles.” — Greg Peterson Given my failures at trying to keep the squirrels out of our tomatoes, I tend to doubt that it’s as simple as Peterson makes it sound. Still, I find the idea intriguing. I don’t want to give up my …
In the yard
“My father used to play with my brother and me in the yard. Mother would come out and say, ‘You’re tearing up the grass.’ ‘We’re not raising grass,’ Dad would reply. ‘We’re raising boys.’” — Harmon Killebrew This is a perfect time of year for this quote. The All-Star break is coming up, and many lawns …
Our gardens — our wills
“Our bodies are our gardens – our wills are our gardeners.” – William Shakespeare The more I think about this analogy, the more it holds up on several different levels. Gardening is not easy; it involves no small amount of dirt, sweat and failure. But the rewards, which go beyond the final results each year, …
In a garden
The kiss of the sun for pardon The song of the birds for mirth One is nearer God’s heart in the garden Than anywhere else on earth — Dorothy Gurney I don’t know what it is about Canada, whether it’s the climate or the eagerness for warm weather or the souls of its people, but …
A garden and a library
“He who has a garden and a library wants for nothing.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero Several weeks ago one of our readers sent me this quote, and I immediately thought “That would make a great post for the blog.” What makes the quote so appealing is that most people can have at least a small library and …
Expect nothing
“Expect nothing. Live frugally On surprise.” — Alice Walker It may seem contradictory for a self-proclaimed optimist to quote Walker’s counsel to expect nothing, but there is very real difference between expectation and optimism. Admittedly, optimism involves some expectation, but it is mostly of a general sort. We expect that joy lies ahead if we …
Diligence and labor
“He who labors diligently need never despair; for all things are accomplished by diligence and labor.” — Menander People often say that women marry their fathers, but in most ways I think I married my mother. My husband is so like her, especially when it comes to enjoying work. I like to joke that if …
Try adding some bright
“Your attitude is like a box of crayons that color your world. Constantly color your picture gray, and your picture will always be bleak. Try adding some bright colors…” — Allen Klein I appreciate people who take the time to add color to everyday life. Some people plant bright annuals that bloom in spring and …
Defeat Despair 