Happy Surprises

I'm looking forward to Christmas lights. And snow. Every time fall rolls around, I can't help but think, "Christmas is coming, and spring's just around the corner!" My bulbs will poke their snouts up through the cold, cold ground because they can't wait any longer. That smell in the air of green things under the mulch... I digress.

Fall used to make me melancholy, but now my garden makes me appreciate every season. Its beauty is never ending. I enjoy caring for it: I clean it, I give it sustenance, and I invest time and energy and money in it. I watch it grow and change and feel a great sense of pride in how I've contributed to its loveliness. It delights and surprises me at every turn. The garden is like my child in many ways. And as if it were my child, I photograph it incessantly.

Here are some of the latest pictures of my darling one. The one with the little purple flowers is rosemary in bloom!