Herbs, herbs, herbs

This is my new and improved herb garden. The picture was taken a few weeks ago and already the plants are beginning to fill in the empty spaces.

Normally, I love the unkempt look, but there is something really nice about a new, neat, tidy, new garden. It is all about hope for the future.

This garden used to contain huge plants; lavender, oregano, sage, and rosemary, but winter took its toll. Not only that, but I didn't do much pruning, so the lavender and rosemary were like small trees. My husband John, who has been a gardening trouper of late, dug them out and replaced them. The new rosemary is so small, it is hardly visible. Its growth with all the luscious rain we have received this Spring, however, is measurable. I will be diligent with my pruning this year.

I love gardening because it is such a learning experience. This is the second revision of my first-ever herb garden. It has been great fun to watch the plants grow and to use them in cooking.

This garden now contains chives, garlic, lemon balm, basil, oregano, cilantro, dill, rosemary and thyme. Since the picture, I've added flat-leaf parsley. In the perennial garden, I've added lemon-thyme, lemon-mint, and lavender. My hope is that the herbs will take over the entire yard.

Now if only we could find an herb that eats chiggers, I'd be a really happy Ozark gardener.

Earth Day, my favorite day of the year

Today is my favorite day of the year -- Earth Day.

Mother Earth was kind enough to give presents -- a gentle rain shower that turned our Arkansas back yard into a rain forest. The sun is shining now. Like all females, Mother Earth is prone to changing her mind. As I look out the window into the woods, droplets of rain on the still new leaves sparkle as the warm sun caresses them. The landscape shimmers as if dressed in sequins. Thank you Mother Earth. The effect is spectacular.

Twenty years ago on this day, I experienced a kind of environmental awakening that has forever changed how I see and think about things. This new kind of spirituality inspires deeper thought, a kind of peripheral vision that takes in new dimensions, and a sense of connection to all living things.

"When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world," said John Muir, founder of the Sierra Club, who was born on this day.

That quote has been my favorite since I first heard it. Connections are not always clear. Sometimes they are difficult to discern, but we must not be blinded by the obvious.

On that day twenty years ago, I walked with a group of other nature lovers along a trail. It was a time when "Save the Earth" was a popular slogan. I was disturbed about oil spills, killing dolphins in tuna nets, too much plastic that never degrades, landfills overflowing with trash that could be recycled into useful products, and the very future of the only planet we can call home. But as I walked the trail, in the forest remnant that had been largely untouched since it was carved out by glaciers hundreds of thousands of years ago, I realized that humans aren't able to save the earth any more than they can affect it. Mother Earth will save herself, even if it is at our expense. I fear for humans who totally miss the point. The only thing that man's work will destroy is man.

I'm saddened that little has been accomplished in the past 20 years. And I am frustrated -- no angry -- at recent political attempts to reverse protections of the environment. Thankfully, the pendulum has swung back again.

Even though I'm unhappy that there must be legal efforts to thwart man's destructive behavior against himself, it is too important not to be supportive since not everybody gets it. My hope for the environmental future of mankind is that more people realize the connections.

Spectacular Spring

This Spring has been absolutely spectacular. Thanks to the hard work of my husband who has done the heavy lifting, or should I say heavy digging, this Spring has been a joy to behold.

This white lilac is a good example of one of many successes we have enjoyed this season. It has been a spectacular Spring, with a color pallet filled with every conceivable shade of green. A whole other pallet includes all the other colors. I don't know which is better, the pinks, purples, yellows, or those glorious greens.

Winter was long. It seemed as though it took so much time to get here, but it was worth the wait. With the trees fully leafed as well as shrubs and flowers blooming, I could not be more satisfied.

I was especially pleased to see this plant bloom. In only its second year, it was loaded with tall spikes of tiny perfect flowers.

Planting this particular plant was deliberate. It was planted to honor my late father. It was similar to a variety he planted so many years ago. I had little interest in gardening in those days, yet I do recall how enamored he was with his double white lilac. And, I never forgot its unmistakably sweet fragrance. I didn't hesitate when I saw this plant in a catalogue.

So Dad, this one's for you. I wish you were here to enjoy it with me.

Proud to watch as Obama exhibits leadership

As I watched President Barack Obama sign Health Care Reform into law, it was a poignant moment, not because of mere words -- what is in the new law or what isn't in it -- but because of what is behind it. Undoubtedly, this will prove that one-size-fits-all does not exist. And there will undoubtedly be negatives. Perhaps some people will fall through the cracks. But overall, I believe this will be a positive story for the majority of Americans.

Like so many issues, when the dust settles, the loudest critics will likely follow along eventually. As changes will take place. They will see that this has been a good thing, in subtle ways that they didn't even think possible. That is how it always happens.

It is a what we have sought for so long.

It is so rare to experience real leadership exhibited in this country. I have become so cynical over the last decade, that I began to believe that common sense just wasn't possible. But not only is it possible, it is happening.

That is a wonderous thing. Hope is a beautiful thing, as it changes our perspective. It gives us the ability to see through new eyes. A new perspective is always a good, refreshing change.

MySpace and Facebook, treasured communication tools

I just had a conversation with a friend on Facebook about the benefit of social media.

For me, MySpace and Facebook present an opportunity to "reach out and touch someone," just like the slogan in the 1980's for long distance phone giant AT&T. Ma Bell is still an important part of everyday life, but she has her competition today. Personally, I'd rather do my reaching out through cyberspace.

For my part, I enjoy how social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter, all of which I use, has allowed me to connect to others in a way that not long ago wasn't even possible.

My family is small. Like many families, we aren't very good at keeping in-touch. We have even slacked off on that annual Christmas card exchange, once a time-honored tradition. Also, my husband and I have recently moved to another state, so we left behind many good friends and family.

Communication is so important. MySpace and Facebook have allowed me to link with cousins I haven't seen in years. I've re-connected with friends from our former neighborhood. I've even found some friends from high school that I haven't even thought about in years. Just seeing their names and an updated picture of them, brings me back to those carefree days of my youth. Memories long buried have come flooding back. I've begun regular communication with my brother who I rarely see.

My children have accounts, so we can supplement our phone conversations, with our on-line chats. I can see pictures of my grandkids readily, thanks to the advancement of digital photography and the ease of sharing. It is like being a part of their lives in a way that might not have been possible any other way.

I know there are drawbacks, but for me, social media has been a communication tool and a very positive experience.

Sugarland is music to stir the soul

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originally uploaded by zephyrr95.

I cannot remember the last time I was moved by listening to 'new' music. Usually I just crank up the 'oldies,' the songs that hold special, even intimate memories for me. I love how music, especially songs from our 'prime,' conjures up thoughts and feelings in such a way to seemingly transport us back to another time.

Sex on Fire - Sugarland from Sugarland Music on Vimeo.

Right now, I am listening to the latest object of my musical affection -- Sugarland. I am so impressed with Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush. I think they are a talent beyond words. Their music, unlike so many things today, is simply 'real.'

I have gone back and forth in my affection for Country Music, but the longer I live and the more I hear other genres, the more I realize my heart belongs to Country. Perhaps that has something to do with my rather new-found affection for living in the Country. I was born a City Mouse, but I consider that just a geographic mixup by my parents.

High food prices

I can still remember my first full time job as a checkout clerk at a grocery store. I worked at National Tea Company. I remember what some of those prices were. Sometimes while stocking up on groceries today, I have a flashback of the prices and wonder whatever happened to them? A gallon of whole milk cost $1.29; a jar of baby food was $.19; and a loaf of bread was $.29.

Those were the days. Back then we had to do the math ourselves, counting out change to our customers. We were also taught that when making change, coins were placed into the customer's hand first, with paper money on top. Only then did we distribute the proper number of S & H green stamps. Remember those?

One of my pet peeves today is that such retail etiquette has disappeared. How many times have you had your change roll off the top of crinkled, unkempt dollar bills and onto the floor or under your car at a drive through?

But that little annoyance pales in comparison to how upsetting it is that the cost of food has risen so dramatically.

When my children were little, I really struggled. I carried a calculator and added costs as I went. I didn't want to be embarrassed at the checkout by having too little cash. Whatever happened to cash anyway? On the days that I forgot my calculator, I got by with estimating about $1 per food item, not counting meat. Today, that estimate falls far short. Practically nothing costs under $1.

So why does food cost so much more today? I suspect one of the reasons is all the advertising that is done. Commercials on television every few minutes has to be expensive.

I have an idea -- STOP! Advertising is annoying. It doesn't teach us anything. It only tries to coerce us into buying a particular item, much like a con game. Advertising has destroyed our national pasttime, television viewing. But it also infiltrates every aspect of our lives. Cut advertising and lower our food prices. That would make me really happy.