A story in five parts

Are you sitting comfortably,

then I shall begin ...

Part 1.

Prologue

This dank and dreary weather is not for everyone. 

Sitting in the house with the lights on and the fire quietly crackling away 

makes the outside seem more ... outside.

Giving a dampening numbing feeling to me.

I resort to looking a photographs to give me inner sunlight.

Part 2.

Change of direction

I have attempted this post several times and in several guises

each one relevant and not relevant in one sweep.

When I started, the weather was damp and sullen

as was my mood.

Then the sun broke through, warmed my garden,

 energised me,

exhilarated the weeds

and sparked life in my sown seeds 

to show tiny green shoots of hope.

Part 3.

A mini retrospective.

Last spring - I needed to create a vegetable patch,

I needed to feel productive,

I wanted to provide and produce something from the garden, from me.

 The potager was born and for a few short sweet weeks

we regularly harvested and ate from the garden.

Then, we planted something new - my summerhouse studio.

I lost my potager and although I am beyond happy and in love

with my studio in the garden,

I missed my veg plot.

Part 4.

New shoots.

Last week, all my boys were at home,

from school,

from uni,

from work.

We walked (when the weather was good)

we talked, a lot.

We gardened.

With a irresistible urge to connect with this vernal movement,

we rescued my glasshouse of years of incorrect usage and towers of plastic pots,

removing the floor and laying new paths.

Creating deep beds.

Needing a lot of compost,

I emptied the compost bays.

All three of them.

All deep and chocolatey worm rich

black soil.

Whilst digging out heavy spadefuls

and pushing even heavier barrows

from compost

to glasshouse

gave me time to think and to plan.

A garden game of tetras 

became a long list of what to do next.

*Move the old composts to a new site

*Flatten and tidy old site and replace decrepit fence

*build a new shelter for the wheelbarrows

*build new compost bays

*lay new paths

*lift the lawn

*create new growing spaces

*plant the sprouting bulbs

*sow wild flower seeds on the green roof

The list seemed exhaustive and growing each time I thought.

Part 5

Finale (almost)

Most of the list is done.

As am I.

But, Monday is a new day

and I am ready to paint

because

both my garden and I

feeling fully charged

so ...

Bring it on!

And the photos? They were the images that gave me my inner sunshine :)