I have an accidental meadow at the entrance to my house. The coreopsis flowers that have begun to bloom in the past week began as plants that looked like weeds in early spring. I have learned each year that if I wait long enough and leave them alone (a very hard thing for me), they will bloom in great profusion as summer begins. 
This year, I have an abundance of coreopsis in the Entry Garden. I didn't plant them; they planted themselves as they sowed their seeds across the property into every nook and cranny of the yard. The butterflies, moths, and dragonflies love this little meadow. I love it too. It makes me smile every time I enter the front gate. It's like a little gift of tiny yellow kisses.
How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then rest afterwards.This framed sampler was a gift from one of my friends in celebration of my impending retirement. I am not normally of fan of things like this but I loved this the moment I saw it. Doesn't it almost sound like something Winnie the Pooh would say? I don't really plan or expect to be doing nothing. However, I do like to rest a lot, especially after a long bit of work in the yard or after an intense art session. We are planning to hang this little treasure in the travel trailer, where we will be doing a lot of resting and ruminating.
I also got very lucky at my favorite thrift store today. I have been searching for an old Scrabble game for a very long time because I want to use some of the tiles in my art and on some of my vintage tags. Two weeks ago, when I took my soldering class, I found out that Scrabble tiles are very good to use for solder practice as their edges are just about the perfect size. And so today, I just took a stroll to the game section, like I do EVERY time I'm in the thrift store. Except this time, my game was there. I am so pumped!!
This is a photograph I had never seen until last Sunday when rummaging through old memorabilia at my Aunt Rosie's house. I'm guessing, because of the advertising on the car window, that this car was my father's car when he owned a coffee shop. I love this picture of my mother and on this Mother's Day, I have a few memories to share. My mother was a lover of language and taught me all I know about grammar and spelling. She insisted that I go to college even though all I wanted to do was to get married. She knew much better than I because the college diploma lasted much longer than the marriage. When she became very old and lost her lucidity, she would still toss out words like "Leviticus", "Medulla Oblongata", the Environmental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT), and Stan DeFrietas (author of Florida gardening books.) I would be in awe that she could remember these things when she could not remember what had happened the day prior.
My mother died two years ago. I was thinking today of her funeral and how our dog had to be in attendance because we live in another city and my mother's funeral was in Tampa. The dog was in a crate back in the choir loft. She never made a sound, even when my daughter Shannon sang the Lord's Prayer. We memorialized my mother while the dog rested in her crate. I think it is the humor of the moment that allows us to get through the serious passages in our lives. My mother would have probably asked the dog, "When are you leaving?", a question she often asked me the moment I arrived to visit her.
These two cards from the wedding of my aunt and uncle are but a few of the treasures I brought home yesterday after spending the day in Tampa with my cousin and favorite aunt. We found ephemera from the births, weddings, anniversaries, and birthdays of many members of our family. I plan to use much of it for my art projects but will also share it on the blog from time to time. 
It was so interesting to notice the formality with which each card was signed, even by siblings. But I need to remember that these events took place in the thirties and forties, during a time when formality was the norm and familiarity was unheard of except behind closed doors. I found precious letters written by my mother to her youngest sister on the birth of her first son and Western Union telegrams of congratulations on first anniversaries. Yesterday, I brought home a box of history.
I have an accidental meadow at the entrance to my house. The coreopsis flowers that have begun to bloom in the past week began as plants that looked like weeds in early spring. I have learned each year that if I wait long enough and leave them alone (a very hard thing for me), they will bloom in great profusion as summer begins. 
This year, I have an abundance of coreopsis in the Entry Garden. I didn't plant them; they planted themselves as they sowed their seeds across the property into every nook and cranny of the yard. The butterflies, moths, and dragonflies love this little meadow. I love it too. It makes me smile every time I enter the front gate. It's like a little gift of tiny yellow kisses.
