October 27, 2021
Reflections, Day 19
Renew, release, let go. Yesterday’s gone. There’s nothing you can do to bring it back. You can’t “should’ve” done something. You can only DO something. Renew yourself. Release that attachment. Today is a new day!”
― Steve Maraboli, Unapologetically You: Reflections on Life and The Human Experience.
I’ll never forget the first time I stood on the beautiful porch and looked down at the weedy mud. It was another of the historic downtown houses that I admire. I love the challenges involved in cleaning, taming, renewing, and creating gardens that enhance the already beautiful sites.
The client had said, “I want a small area of zoysia sod and I want flowers.”
I asked, “why do you want the grass?”
“Well,” he replied, “I want to sit on the grass and enjoy the flowers.”
I didn’t see grass in that spot. Instead, I saw a brick patio. I explained my reasoning and the client showed great wisdom and accepted the idea. We built the patio and brought in excellent materials to mix into an effective growing medium. The first year’s flowers grew well. In the fall, we removed the annual flowers and planted pansies for the winter.
This year, in the spring of 2021, we removed the winter flowers and planted “sunpatiens” and dragon wing begonias for the summer. I had not visited the garden for some time and yesterday I walked in and saw a magnificent flower show. I stood on the same porch as before and grinned at the beauty. I said to my friend, “It just makes you feel good to be able to put together something that pretty.”
And then we went to work and performed our duties of renewal. You see, we knew in a few days the first frost of the season would turn these beautiful flowers to mush.
So we pulled them out. We cleaned up the fallen leaves, oak tree seedlings, and flower petals. We raked out the detritus and made the planting beds look new.
And then we planted a multitude of pansy plants in mixed colors.
Sometimes it is difficult to pull the flowers out, but we know from experience that we need to plant the pansies well before winter so that they can grow out some new roots and get ready to show off in their way.
There will be flowers.
—john schulz
johntheplantman--Gardening 