OK, that's enough
Tuesday, May 26, 2009 at 11:51PM The two week battle with my garden is over and I sit like a victor on my terrace surveying the results of the carnage and my newly reclaimed territory. It was at times a bloody and close fought thing with casualties on both sides but in the end there could be only one and I, the victor, sit back and enjoy the fruits of victory in the shape of a gin and tonic and a bowl of mini pretzels. As anticipated, the skip was insufficient for the job – I can’t quite believe I really needed an 8 cubic yard builders skip for my garden waste – but it seems like I did and my baby version sits on my drive, packed to the gunnels (I climbed in and jumped up and down on it with abandon in an attempt to fit more in) whilst another pile of garden residue sits beside it, fully 8 feet long by 4 feet wide and at least 4 feet high. That’s 128 cu. feet of rubbish that somehow has to disappear and remarkably I am still not finished. How much is this garden prepared to give up? How much energy have I got left for this? How long can my knees take it? And what really beats me is that give it a couple of weeks of inattention and it all grows back. Sometimes I can really see the value in concrete.
But what it has done, this sustained and determined effort, is to get me kickstarted out of my state of lethargy and inertia. Down at the garden centre for 8.30 in the morning? No problem. Still in the garden at 9.30 in the evening weeding in the rain? You bet. Body bent like a z-bed? Just goes with the territory. I have dreams about climbers and ramblers, but that’s another story completely. But gracious, it has made me realise how much work keeping this house and garden takes and how much effort life takes if it is to be any more than run of the mill because take your eye off anything for just a minute and it all starts going backwards. But would I wish for anything else? Well sometimes, yes. Sometimes it would be nice to get up and actually have nothing to do other than grind some beans for coffee and read the newspaper but I know that I would only be content with that for a while (ok, regularly on Sundays maybe) and in the meantime I think the effort pays off.
Reader Comments (2)
Concrete! Never! It's a great having a garden because as you quite rightly say there's always something to do. You never get the blackbirds following you around in a "yard".
Furthermore without a garden you'd be bored 5 minutes after breakfast.
Keep up the good work. Are there before and after photos?
I've got Hedge Cutting to look forward to.
Then a rest on the garden seat with suitable refreshment.
Cheers,
Richard
You are right. Nothing can ever justify concrete. But just sometimes..... when I stand and look at everything so beautifully contained and know, just know, that two weeks down the line it will be fighting back, well just then I wonder if ..... but you are right, nothing is as lovely as hearing the birds sing and watching them build their nests and having that greenery around you. I have just invested in a new steamer, so I now have somewhere to sit in comfort and survey my estate (ha ha ) with suitable refreshment. L