When the world wearies and society fails to satisfy, there is always the garden. — Minnie Aumonier This half barrel planter has been my herb garden for the past four summers. A mismatch of a few odd, not so perfect things, just like me. An unruly lavender plant that somehow survived last winter in its tiny pot. A reincarnated mint, occupying a slightly different spot in the barrel this time around. A solar light that I stole from the front yard that soaks up the sun all day long and casts gleeful patterns on the tender herb leaves after sundown. A purple solar powered globe with a glass mosaic that used to light up when it was younger. Now it just reflects the light that shines on it — probably should be discarded, but I am not done with it yet. I have trouble letting go of old friends. It is a good idea to be alone in a garden at dawn or dark so that all its shy presences may haunt you and possess you in a reverie of suspended thought. ~ James Douglas ...
Yes there is fear. Yes there is isolation. Yes there is panic buying. Yes there is sickness. Yes there is even death. But, They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise You can hear the birds again. They say that after just a few weeks of quiet The sky is no longer thick with fumes But blue and grey and clear. They say that in the streets of Assisi People are singing to each other across the empty squares, keeping their windows open so that those who are alone may hear the sounds of family around them. They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland Is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound. Today a young woman I know is busy spreading fliers with her number through the neighbourhood So that the elders may have someone to call on. Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples are preparing to welcome and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting All over the world people are looking at their neig...