Listen, Watch, and Choose
Look how broccoli flourishes in the dead of winter in Texas! It’s its time and season to do so. I know it sounds silly, but today, I’m grateful for broccoli!
Mulch, a Warm Blanket
One of my favorite things to do in February is to snuggle up in a warm blanket with my back to the sun on a cloudless cold day and read a book, or write in my spirals. I’ll move my chair around to make sure I get as much warmth as possible as the sun arches across my back porch. All is cozy until the infamous Northers blow and I am startled out of my revery and clamor to seek some kind of barrier from the biting wind.
An Herb Garden Means Home
When I haven’t been able to go home since I can’t ever move back to Lebanon, I’ve dug in at each location on my life’s journey and planted an herb garden, recreating the tastes and smells of home.As in the picture above, I’m sitting in front of the garden I dug up behind my apartment in college. Herbs gift me with a sense of permanence because most herbs are perennial, returning every year with self-seeding or self- rooting. I can count on my herbs’ consistent presence. An herb harvest is plentiful, yielding its bounty season after season. Herbs are easy to process whether used fresh or dried for later. And herbs grow like weeds because that’s basically what they are!
Eat Your Greens!
Farm to Table is the new buzz phrase in food lingo and is quickly becoming a worn out slogan. What does it mean for us who don’t live on a farm anyway?! Basically, it means eating seasonal and locally grown produce. Local means: in your area, in your backyard, on your patio, or even on your balcony. In the middle of a Texas winter, I’ve got growing in my raised beds, swiss chard, arugula, spinach, broccoli, parsley, celery, and an assortment of lettuce.
Giving Asylum
What does that mean? For me, it means being a safe person. An apt metaphor for this state of being is my backyard insect hotel. Yes! It’s a real thing!