Gardening is my quiet time or is it? Story

Monek Marie
Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

Gardening is my quiet time. A time to reflect, enjoy nature and have peace. Most of the time.

My one garden was behind the barn, away from the road and anyone disturbing me. My garden was huge one year and took a lot of my time. To enjoy my breaks I had a comfortable lawn chair recliner, an umbrella and an ice chest with cool water for those hot days.

One day after working hard I decided to take a break and lay down on the recliner. Of all times my brother comes over, sees me and says, "We wondered what you did over here all day." My reply, "Watch yourself or there will be no fresh veggies on the table for supper."

Then there was the time the motor boat stopped to ask for help for the stuck cow in the creek.

But one time was scary. I saw a guy coming up from the creek and thought, What now?

"Hi, do you have any beer?"

Beer? Someone gets out of a boat to ask for beer? And he was really drunk.

"No we do not have any beer"

"No Beer? We ran out and we need beer. There's no beer in your house?"

"Sorry Sir, but we don't drink there is absolutely no beer in the house." That was a true statement.

"Well, where is the nearest bar or store that sells beer?"

"This is a dry township so you either need to go back north to Frewsburg, which is 8 miles or go to Warren and that's 10 miles."

"We need beer now, do you neighbors have beer?"

No sir, We are all non drinkers in this area, Sorry" ( I told a fib, My neighbors made wine by the 50 gallon barrels in their shed but the shape this man was in I did not want to give this information out)

So one very unhappy man joined his buddies in the boat and continued south.

I later asked my neighbors if a boat load of party people stopped to ask for beer, and thankfully they did not.

What's your garden story?

Comments

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 2021

    One summer I had stray dogs that came and watched me garden.

    They were two beautiful dogs but had been on their own long enough they would not come to me. At first they would run away when I came but they got to the point where they would lay down and watch me work. I took over wet dog food to try and get some meat on their bones. I would talk to them trying to get their trust but being on their own they no longer trusted humans.

    I could tell one was sick so I called the humane society to see if they could catch them for me. For two weeks I had a cage trap and the officer came each day to check. No luck. I could tell the officer did not believe there were dogs here. So one day she called and said she was picking up the trap. She arrived and as we were rounding the barn, there were the dogs. They took off running but at least she saw them. She left the trap but it was not long before the dogs stopped coming around.

    I hope they found a safe place and help.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 2021

    Sometimes I enjoy sharing my garden.

    One year I had canadian geese and their ducklings in the garden in the mornings. They did not damage any plants but my row markers and row strings (back when I had the old fashioned row look) looked like a spirograph design.

    They came for several years until the neighbors started feeding them behind their camp. Macaroni was more appealing than slugs.

  • Lisa K
    Lisa K Posts: 1,935 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I love working in my garden even though I have a lot I still need to do! I consider my garden as my sanctuary and is the place I head to when I am stressed or dealing with an issue. When my mom passed away I spent time in the garden and even enjoyed weeding, also a friend of mine gave me a Home Depot gift card so I bought two roses in honor of my mom (I still have them 24 years later).

    When I am stressed is when I get the most heavy duty stuff done in the yard and when I get most shrubs & trees trimmed 😊

    Even though my garden backs up to a busy 6 lane highway, once I get started in the yard I do not hear any of the vehicles, all I hear are the birds.

    Speaking of birds, the other day I was working in my front yard and a neighbor was walking her dog and she said that she loves all of the birds that my yard attracts - that made me smile.

  • JodieDownUnder
    JodieDownUnder Posts: 1,483 admin

    @Denise Grant my vegetable garden is my sanctuary. Comfy camping chair, radio and bits and pieces to make it my comfortable space. We have a young family renting our studio for a couple of months and they have a 5 yr old boy. A beautiful, bright, funny, well mannered, switched on little man. He showed a real interest in the garden and loves having a graze on fresh produce. So I gave him a plot, made him a sign and we planted some seeds. The peas and lettuce have germinated and since then I’ve planted some broccoli, kale, parsley and dill seedlings. When he sees me in there, he comes over and asks questions, waters the plants and generally we have a nice time. It’s a joy to see this little man have a keen interest and better still, have a munch on whatever he can get his hands on. I guess it gives me my grandma fix and it gives his folks a bit of time out.

  • VermontCathy
    VermontCathy Posts: 1,987 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Since switching from working in a business office to working in my home office, I have had a lot more opportunity to take sanity breaks out in the garden. It has been very good for my emotional health. And as a side effect, I'm more aware of what goes on out there, and the weeds are kept under control!

    I wonder if COVID has this effect for many people. If you are working from home every day and you have a garden, you are likely in much closer touch with the land and the plants, both emotionally and in terms of managing it.

    Will this be one of several factors that makes people resist going back to the office full time?

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    No matter what is happening in my life putting my hands in soil makes anything better.

    And growing from seed is a miracle every time I see it

  • Lisa K
    Lisa K Posts: 1,935 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @VermontCathy Before COVID hit I had started a job that was from home and yes I did and do spend time out in my garden even if it is pulling some weeds on my way to and from the mailbox! I try to get some work done in my garden either before I start work, at lunch and/or after work.

    Also I my office has a big picture window that looks out onto one of my patios and there is a big Bottle Brush bush with lots of red flowers!