flowers

Friday Five: Growth opportunities

Spring being a tough act to follow, God created June.
~Al Bernstein
1. Turtle-ish writer that I am, I'm celebrating that my getalong is finally catching up to my gumption. (To mix metaphors, "the little engine that could" is finally cresting that hill…) Translated, this means that, aside from the occasional sleuthing trip, I'm spending more time at my writing desk these days. So if you don't see me posting here, you know where to find me. June is a time for growth…CAN I GET A WITNESS? 

2. Between writing sessions, I'm also spending time in my garden. Earlier this spring, I sprinkled special soil amendments around the base of these hydrangeas, in hopes that I could turn the blossoms blue. But hydrangeas have a mind of their own, as you can plainly see.

3. Dainty springtime flowers are slowly giving way to the hardier plants of summer. Fuschias for the hummingbirds, roses for me. Here, a trio of tiny dancers flits across an imaginary stage, tutus flouncing…

4. But sigh, even the hardiest plants fall prey to neglect. Conversely, they suffer from too much attention. You know where this is going, don't you? Hovercraft attentive gardener that I am, I may have ruined my brand new roses. I overwatered them. In a precaffeinated morning haze, I reached for the organic insect/disease control spray. Yikes! I accidentally doused their pretty faces with Spray 'n Wash. And lo, my long-suffering plants are showing signs of shock. They're not blossoming much, and the fringed edges of the (yellowed) leaves are scorched. *Sob* I'm too embarrassed to post pictures…. 

5. Oh, but wait 'til you here this! A package arrived on my doorstep earlier this week. Inside…whoa. A gadget-savvy, very dear friend gave me a super-wazoo camera! Such a generous and thoughtful gesture; I'm still wide-eyed with amazement. It's got all kinds of fancy-pants features; still, it's light and nimble, which means I can fling onto the seat of my roadster, can sling around my neck when I'm gardening or hiking. Given a little (lot of) practice, it'll take me way beyond the limitations of my trusty little point-and-shoot, so yay! Another opportunity to learn and grow! Extra bonus: In losing myself behind the camera lens, I oftentimes find inspiration for my writing.  

Here's to June, a month for change and growth. However that manifests itself for me, I'm ready.

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Thankful Thursday: Something of a miracle

In late January, this rosebush was a tangled mess of roots & twigs, nothing more.

I amended the soil, added water and compost tea. I whispered prayers as I weeded, released an entire carton of ladybugs over the rosebed when an aphid infestation hit. And ealier this morning, Pope John Paul II made his grand debut in my garden!

Bird by bird, rosebud by rosebud…this is how miracles reveal themselves, I've finally realized. 

I'll show you more blossoms at some point (ha, did you harbor any doubts?), but it seemed appropriate to feature this one on Thankful Thursday.

ETA: Pope John Paul II in full bloom, just in time for Mother's Day! Pure white petals, strong citrus fragrance…a slice of Heaven, here on earth!

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Friday Five

1. Some of my favorite childhood memories come of front-porch conversations and church potlucks, where quiet conversations turned to songfests. Not the auto-tuned, polished and synthesized music you hear today. No, I'm talkin' about that old-time, raise-the-roof, glory-hallelujah gospel singing!  Like this, minus any whiff of commercialism:


It's memories like this inspired me to rename this blog Joyful Noise. It's also why I'm taking voice lessons. Slowly but surely, I'm learning to make my own kind of music (thank you, Mama Cass); to sound my barbaric yawp over the rooftops, ala Walt Whitman; to embrace the polished and imperfect, equally. Joyfully. And blessed be, all this noise-making is finding its way into WITNESS.

2. Writing (life itself) is all about singing from your heart, isn't it? It's about choosing fresh over stagnant, about translating the tried-and-true into something original. That's the premise of the movie, JOYFUL NOISE, which I saw last weekend with a friend. Even if you're not of a mind to watch the whole movie, I highly recommend this clip (Higher Ground, via YouTube). It's an uplifting medley of contemporary songs*, remastered with gospel stylin's.  * "Higher" (Sly & The Family Stone), "Yeah" (Usher), "Forever" (Chris Brown), and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" (Stevie Wonder).

3. Thich Nhat Han once said, "If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today." I suspect this is why our ears perk and our hearts beat faster, whenever we hear the opening strains to certain songs. For me, it's gospel choruses and spirituals. They reach the very depths of my soul. Old becomes new, and personally meaningful. (Oh my gracious, when Queen Latifah sang Fix Me Jesus, I was wringing tears from my shirt sleeve!) 

4 and 5. I want to tell you about SAY AMEN, SOMEBODY, which we also saw last weekend. But I need to declutter the house for a special weekend guest, so I think I'll save that story for next time. I'll leave you instead with these harbingers of spring, joyful noises in their own right.

Thankful Thursday: Pretty paperwhites

I mentioned them earlier, but I thought I might give a shout-out to my paperwhites on Thankful Thursday, because even though Toby's been waking me up at ungodly hours (grumble, grumble), they're a cheerful presence in my kitchen.

Here, in the land of sunshine, trees are perennially leafy and the garden blooms year 'round. So yeah, I'm spoiled in that regard. But even if you live in a much harsher climate, you can grow flowers in your kitchen window. Amaryllis are big and showy, but I prefer delicate paperwhites. They're known for their peppery fragrance and prolific, long-lasting blooms–a perfect antidote for the post-holiday drearies, I think. So if you're looking past Christmas to lots of wooly-grey weather,  this might just be the perfect gift, for yourself and/or that Special Someone…

Growing paperwhites is super-easy. You can plant them anytime, in almost any kind of container imaginable. You don't have to chill them, and they don't require good drainage. Just burrow the butt end of the bulb into a bed of stones, add water, and let your babies nap in a dark room for about a week. Roots develop during this hibernation period, and the stems grow about 2 or so inches. When the roots and new growth are established, you place them in a window sill, and voilà! Three to four weeks later, this is what they'll look like:

(I think I'll use a darker, smoother stone next time. Or maybe marbles,–wouldn't that be fun?)

Something new I tried this year: Pickled Paperwhites, a technique that involves feeding your bulbs a dilute cocktail of alcohol and water. (The ratio varies, based on the spirits you choose. I chose vodka because it's odorless.)  This turns them into lushes stunts the stem growth, thus preventing the heavy blossoms from toppling over. 


Toby gives them his seal of approval.

Start yours now, and they'll brighten your windowsill in late January, when you're searching for those earliest signs of spring.

On Santa’s naughty list? Who, me?!?

Toby (long version: Toblerone, in honor of his er, loft) is sweet. But he's a bad, bad kitty, nonetheless! He awakens me in the wee hours of every blessed morning by batting my cheek with a huge paw and purring. Loudly. Sleepy-eyed me, I wander into the kitchen to make coffee, and Toby trots ahead, fluffy tail held aloft like a wind sail. It's hard to get mad at him, though, because he's such a happy, loving kitty–a natural-born explorer who creates purr-worthy playthings out of everything he finds in his path (me, included).

Just this morning, for instance, Toby discovered the drunken paperwhites in our kitchen window. They came into bloom overnight, and he made it his job to investigate. See how innocent and sweet he looks? Ho! Ho! Ho! I suspect that Santa knows otherwise…

Do tell: Who's on the naughty list at your house?

SoCal Autumn

Camellias are blooming against the back fence, and when I snapped this picture, a hummingbird whirred past…

I'm tucked into my writing, and the tea pot's whistling on the stove…

November…It's a harbinger of winter in other places, but where I live, it's yet another season of growth. The light slants different, but there's plenty of sun and warmth. I'm grateful for another birthday month, another season in which to give thanks for this and other blessings.

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