A post about following my instincts when they told me to spend the day in the garden instead of at my desk
On the day I should have been writing an article for a national website, an invisible force lured me into the garden and made me potter about there instead. This is what I did.
Hung out the flags to celebrate summerWeeded the troughs to show off my new colour-changing solar lampsTidied the old patio and brought the sewing machine table and chairs back in from the lawn to create a nice seating area for morning coffee
Gave some houseplants a summer holiday
Brought out the cuttings I’ve taken to give them some sunshine
Accidentally took a photo of my foot
Tried to teach some scented geraniums to climb
Hacked back the eau-de-cologne mint and added some patriotic planting in frontAdmired the honeysuckle. Bliss.Thought about my lovely friend Aaren, whose birthday it was that day, and photographed the gift she gave me for my 16th birthday to put on Facebook with my birthday message to herDiscovered a mysterious and beautiful butterfly which my friend Clare later identified as a day-flying moth. Who knew?! The statue is a moon-gazing hare, by the way, an ancient fertility symbol. Maybe the butterfly/moth has family plans.Tidied another bit of patio (in front of old pigsty) and its pots of herbs, which I then designated the summer lunch room
I refused to feel guilty for having such a blissfully fulfilling day in the sunshine, which I’m sure restored my spirits and equilibrium, as well as the garden.
Author of warm, witty and gently funny fiction and non-fiction, including the popular Sophie Sayers Village Mystery series, beginning with "Best Murder in Show", inspired by her life in an English Cotswold community, short stories and essays about country life. As Commissioning Editor for the Alliance of Independent Authors' Advice Centre, she writes guidebooks authors. She speaks at many literature festivals and writing events, and is part of BBC Radio Gloucestershire's monthly Book Club broadcast. She is founder and director of the free Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival which takes place in April, a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association, and an ambassador for children's reading charity Read for Good and the Type 1 diabetes charity JDRF.
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2 thoughts on “The Lure of the Garden”
Beautiful garden – I love those little seating areas 🙂
Beautiful garden – I love those little seating areas 🙂
🙂 time well spent!