Clearing

During the time we've spent here, we've changed the look of the place. It once had brush growing almost right to the front door; the back area was completely grown in.  I had to wait, in the beginning, in order to be sure of where I was going to go with landscaping and building a greenhouse and woodworking shop.


Wait...the very word sends chills down my spine. I am not good with waiting, as long-time readers know. Last year, patience was the last thing on my mind; I wanted the garden to be done. Now. But there were many other items which had to be considered first...such as the interior of the house, which took precedence.

But this year...ahhh, this year... my time will be focused on gardening.  We are almost done with the interior...we have sold the old kitchen cupboards and appliances and this area will now become a huge mudroom/pantry/laundry room. The room will have built-ins...such as a linen closet, which for one reason or another, the house doesn't have.  I still shake my head when I remember unpacking piles of sheets and towels and discovering there was no place to put them...very disconcerting.



So, there are still a few things which must be done inside the house.

But the weather is glorious...we had a sprinkling of Rain, which makes every Shrub and Tree shine...the Aspens are beginning to show their sweet green beginnings, and the wild flowers are showing their tender new leaves as well.  This morning the temperatures were above freezing and Sun shone brightly, warming the soil.


And finally, it is time to garden.


I have found one aspect of gardening...the clearing of land... brings instant gratification.  Suddenly, what once appeared as impenetrable bushy landscape, has become open and inviting, even without any domesticated plants gracing the area. And I learn, as I clear. I learn how fertile the soil is, where once the bushes grew...their leaves, over the years, have broken down and created a very dark loam. I learn some of these places are moist and the soil is far more damp than that of places closer to the house. I finally find moss-covered areas.



It makes a huge difference when there is leaf mould to act as mulch, keeping the moisture in the earth.



I discover wild flowers, which, last year, were completely hidden. My plan was to plant in this area; this has changed, since I will wait to see what inhabits the places under the Aspens.

Roses are planted, however, along the driveway, above the retaining wall.  I visualize visitors being greeted by the scent and sight of the lovely blossoms...Roses will do well here, with sharp drainage, good soil and a warming shelf just above them.


It is a time for surprises.  After the Winter, where I despaired of ever seeing last year's plantings again, where I was sure they had all expired from the cold, I see new leaf growth.  The Hostas are all poking their sharp spikes upward...and Daffodil, even after Squirrel attack, is beginning to bloom.


And all the Lilacs are well on their way, with thick buds gracing the plants. Lilacs remind me of daughter Katrina, even though she's been gone for so many years, each one but a minute since her death. She was born in the month of May, and she walks closely with me during this magical month. She comes back to see her favourite flower bloom...I feel her very near. 

And...oh, she's so very welcome!


As I prune and clean, I find the meditative zone I go into, when there is repetitive work to be done, in the garden. Pain and general malaise fades into the background; I hear the music of the songbirds instead, displacing bodily pain. I become very intent upon the pruning and cutting...it is as if the plant and I are in harmony.


The atmosphere becomes different, when I clear.  It becomes lighter, less bogged. Air streams by, on the hands of Wind, cleansing dark and forgotten pockets of sludge. Warmth from Sun uncurl the tight buds of the wild Roses and Saskatoon Berry, beginning a glorious, new cycle of life.


I spend hours revelling in the pleasure of being here, right now, with no other thought than what I am doing at the present moment.


Clearing the land or clearing the mind...it is all the same, to me.