After dinner I got outside and worked a little at clearing up some more of the weeds that have sprung up from last month’s neglect. I started to reflect on how fast nature takes over our feeble attempts to impose our will.
My worst enemies are the trees and the vines. Pecan, hackberry and redbud seedlings are so prolific that I would be living in a jungle if I let it go. Then there is the bindweed and the honeysuckle waiting to smother everything to the ground.
I wonder what will be left of my garden within a few years of my leaving. Actually I guess that would depend a lot on the next owner. Our house is practically ancient for this area of the country - sixty years old. We have fixed it up a lot. Tore the kitchen down to the studs and rebuilt it ourself. But many of the older houses around here are being leveled to build “mini-mansions.”
South of Ft Worth are the ruins of a fabulous garden built in the 1930’s by a wealthy man. When we visited there a few years ago there were remains of creekside walks and a “ship” built of stone in the creek where glamorous parties were once held. But not much was left of the roses and other plants that once grew alongside those paths.
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Is this man who is moaning about nature taking over the same man who has been driving around the countryside looking at wooded acreage to buy???
Ahh, sometimes i think the purpose of every experience in my life is to create more humility.
For example, there’s this lovely quote:
“My whole life had been spent waiting for an epiphany, a manifestation of God’s presence, the kind of transcendent, magical experience that lets you see your place in the big picture. And that is what I had with my first compost heap.” (Bette Midler)
Mine has already showed me what it will look like with no care. ^ weeks of caterpillars turned me away from my weeding, and now I have weeds taking over the deck!!!
There is something very thrilling about returning to a home in which we once lived, many years ago, and seeing something that we planted lovingly. It’s a little piece of us that remains and serves as a reminder of our presence.
I was all around Dallas today and lamented the fact that “knock-downs” seem such a popular option in the older neighbourhoods. All around the Park Cities, Oak Lawn, and other old Dallas neighbourhoods from the 20’s and 30’s, this seems to be a very popular option. On the bight side, if you have a historic house yourself, you can sometimes buy the old fixtures and such for a song.