the garden

with a grateful heart

my apologies to those of you who have already seen this
i decided i wanted to edit the original
and have these be seperate from a celebration of Jon's birthday

Happy Birthday, Dear Jon!

The Dear Boy, many many years ago

i decided to edit my original post
which contained another celebration, but of a different sort
and i've put it in a new post.

i think i shall survive summer after all

3 beautiful eats

i simply cannot resist going to the farmers market.
i do grow quite a few tasty things
but
there is this very sweet young couple at the market
who are growing beautiful fruit and vegetables.
Their stall is full of colorful piles
with charming, hand-lettered cards
labeling all their mostly-heirloom varieties.
It is all so appealing
that i completely forget all about my camera
until i get home.

This past weekend
i spent $4.50 for one tomato.

It's true.

It was that gorgeous
and those twenty-somethings are that adorable.
And, i've never eaten and 'German Striped' before
It is one of my life's ambitions:
behold, breath in the aroma, and taste as many different
tomatoes as i possibly can before it's all over.

It weighed 2.25 pounds.
It was a meal for two.
All by itself.
Well...you know...along with "a little" mayo
on lovely fresh bread.

Yes.
It. was. fabulous.
i will always remember that tomato.

Even if it hadn't been terrific
it was worth it
just to spend time in the company of those happy, young farmers.

They also had little charentais melons
rather ugly on the outside
(it was kinder not to photograph it)
but the perfume was so enticing
and the smiles on John and Rachel's faces are
so hopeful...
They love what they grow
you can just tell.

So, of course
i brought one home.
Given all the recent rain
the flavor was a bit diluted
but it was still luscious. So very rich
and the perfume almost floral.
A sprinkling of fresh lime juice set it off perfectly.
Here is a lovely illustration
from Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply

On the way home
i stopped at another favorite farm stand
and scored some perfect peaches



We finished the last ones tonight.

Life is good.
So very, very good.

3 beauties

three of my favorite beautiful things
from recent days

my initial reaction when i first spied
this leaf in the rain was
"Ooh. Pretty. Too bad it's lying on asphalt."
Then i looked at it again.



i love these eggs
and the chickens who lay them



And this one
is so extra-ordinary
it deserves at least 2 views

 

3 different views

i accidentally invented this game many years ago.
Tired, i removed my glasses
rubbed my eyes and looked up with
half-open lids.
My surroundings, through the prism
formed by my eyelashes+astigmatism+nearsightedness
turned into a fascinating kalidescope of colorful, soft forms.
And i realized something:
noone will ever see this exactly the way i do with
these eyes.

It felt very strange
in a nice way.

Since then
i often remove my glasses
just to see what unique combinations
my flawed eyes perceive.

My digital cameras let me play with focus in ways i never
thought of with film.
And i get to share it!

Today's 3 beautiful things:
imperfect views of my garden
from my bedroom window

While playing with the light rendered in pixels
i had a thought.
Looking at the garden in this way
i don't see any weeds.
None whatsoever.

three beautiful things

Lucy suggested she felt like doing this again
and that prompted me to do it, too
since Gratitude is one of those things that
once felt, can take hold
and change everything.

P.S. added Aug 11: Lucy's truly are beautiful

July 22nd

 

July 18th