Yesterday I finished cleaning out all of the raised beds.  The potatoes are planted in bags again this year.  It's an odd idea that I saw on the BBC Scotland Television programme @beechgrove_garden  It is available on BritBox.  I highly recommend watching.  Fun and informative.  By the way, I grew potatoes in "tatty bags" last year and it was amazing!  Great harvest of Yukon Golds.

It's the last day of March.  Next week is Holy Week and the lead-in to Easter.  As I have been meditating and reading these past few days I've been struck by one constant.  If I were around during Jesus' time, I would have been a Pharisee.  I would be the unbeliever.  The law-following hater of the one breaking up the status quo.  I'm not proud of this by any means.  I've been a bit of a black and white person most of my life.  Raised in a very conservative Baptist tradition it was all that I knew.  As I've aged, I've realized that we were all like the Pharisees.  Very literal and very stuck in the belief that we were right.  Right-thinking literalists who believed what we were "told" more than what we reasoned and discerned on our own.  At least that was my experience.

I'm much, much older and I've (hopefully) learned and changed through the years.  I still have a bit of that Pharisee in me.  Yet, I've also learned to be much more open and accepting.  I'm much more available to wonder and astonishment as I've become an old man.  The world is an amazing place filled with such a variety of wonderful people.  It can also be a hard, harsh world when the worst of humanity comes out.  We've witnessed so much of that, too!  

Today I am trying to focus on hope.  Hope for our future.  Hope for our country. Hope for our City.  Hope for the world. Whenever I'm around the little ones (who are not so little anymore) my hope is renewed.  I've watched a young one in the neighborhood grow up these past few years as he and his momma walk around.  Listening to his giggles and his constant questions, I have hope.  I see the wonder and astonishment is his eyes.  I hear the love in his questions and the sheer joy in existence.  I have hope.  I cling to hope.  I pray that my faith will not die, that hope will continue to grow and that I will love my neighbor as myself.  I hope. Hope.  Hope!  Amen!

The skies are beautiful over the Carondelet Garden on this last Thursday of the month of March.  April is just around the corner and today's spring-like temperatures are surely welcome.

It's gardening day here in South Saint Louis.  I'm heading out to the garden center for a few supplies and hitting it again today.  I just mowed the lawn on Sunday, but it needs it again.  I'm cleaning out the bed of garlic that did not make it through the winter and getting it ready for my Candy Sweet Onions.  It's an exciting day for this old gardener.  

Have a great Thursday.  Enjoy the sunshine and the blue skies.  Smell the air of Spring.  Be good and be kind to yourself this last Thursday of March.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.

It seems we have a new neighbor here in the Carondelet Garden.  A lovely new home built in the Red Maple.  Welcome to the neighborhood!

It appears that we will be getting a bit more rain later this morning then some clearing this afternoon.  We will be getting a warmup as the week progresses.  Spring is definitely here.  

How are your garden plans progressing?  Potatoes and Onions this week.  Doing some more bed cleanup.  I lost one entire bed of garlic over the winter but the other one looks great.  It's amazing what eight feet can do!  They were that close together.  One survived.  One did not.  The life of an urban gardener.  

I hope you stay safe and dry on this wet Tuesday in late March.  Take care of yourselves.  Take your time.  Be good to yourself and others as you travel about today.  That's all the news from the Carondelet Garden.

I let the grass in the backyard get a little too long before mowing yesterday.  I kept waiting for the rains to stop so things could dry out a bit.  It was really long.  My poor electric lawn mower took a bit of a beating.  I'll be out again this week to do it again.  I do not remember ever mowing in March before.  

A new week is beginning.  It's Monday and time to run a few errands and get a few things ready.  My potato seeds are ready for planting.  My onion sets are arriving this week.  It's an exciting time here in the Carondelet Garden.

Have a wonderful week Gardening friends.  Be good to yourself this week.  Be good and kind to those you may meet along the way.  That's all the news from the Carondelet Garden.

Relax.  Refresh.  Renew.  Enjoy a simple, ordinary Sunday.  Amen!

We woke up to bright sunshine and now the clouds have moved back in, but the weather prognosticators tell me that sunshine will return this afternoon.  We might even see a slight warmup.  Spring storms definitely brought the rain these past few days.  Tomorrow looks like it will be amazing!

It's a bit of lazy day here in the Carondelet Garden.  It's March Madness so basketball is the word of the day.  Chili is in the crockpot.  Life is good!

Here's to a simple, ordinary weekend filled with good basketball, good sportsmanship, and good living.  Be good and be kind to yourself and those around you.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.

It's a chilly, cloudy, rainy start to the day here in the Carondelet Garden.  The Red Maple is showing her beautiful blooms on this Fish Fry Friday in Lent.  Rain will continue through today but the weekend is coming.

March Madness is upon us and we are caught up in the magic as much as the rest of the world.  We love our College Basketball here in the Carondelet Cottage.  Our beloved Billikens women's basketball team didn't make it out of the first round but, hey, they made it to the dance!  We are now rooting for South Carolina.  We love watching them play and their coach is so animated!  

I hope you get a chance to do something you love this weekend.  Maybe a Fish Fry tonight?  That's where we will be later this afternoon.  It's a good day to be kinder and gentler with yourself.  You deserve a little grace on the chilly, cloudy, rainy Friday.  Blessings upon blessings on this Fish Fry Friday in Lent.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.

The Alliums are back and filling in quite nicely in the front Garden.  The usually don't bloom until late June or early July but they last for months and look amazing throughout the hot summer months here in the Carondelet Garden.  I love their simple beauty.  I also love the perennial nature as I don't have to replace them every year.

I love a good perennial.  Something that happens year after year.  You can count on it being there and doing its thing.  A bit of pruning or thinning.  A little fertilizer and water and there you are.  Yesterday was one of those days that should have been simple and ordinary.  You know the kind of day.  You are doing a relatively routine task.  It's a task that only comes once a year and you've used the same software to do that task for what feels like forever.  Yet this year it is not working the way it should.  You spend hours on customer support.  I do feel sorry for the customer support folks.  They are doing their best to help.  I think my support person was more frustrated than I was as every suggestion just hit another wall of "nope, that didn't work."  But today is a new day.  We will, hopefully, try again.  

That's what we do.  We try again.  We keep trying and hopefully success will prevail.  We simply keep trying.  Persevere and be patient.  We keep going.  I hope you have a simple, ordinary day today.  One with few frustrations and a bit of joy.  The rains are moving in and that my slow things a bit.  Patience and perseverance are the words of the day.  God, grant me the serenity.  Patience.  Perseverance.  Wisdom. Amen.

The Hyacinths are lovely even on a wet Spring morning in March. What a beautiful sight to cheer the heart and please the eyes.  Nature never fails to impress!

I have so much to learn about gardening.  Honestly, I still have so much to learn... period!  I was the first person in my family to graduate from High School.  Then college and grad school and I thought I was a learned person.  Yet, the smartest people I've ever met were not necessarily the most educated.  They are the ones who kept their eyes and ears open and were aware.  The watched and listened more.  When they did speak, you needed to listen!  They had something profound to say.  I remember asking my dad for advice one time.  He stopped and looked at me.  "I'll give it to you if you want me to.  You may not like what I have to say." I didn't like what he had to say.  But it was always something I needed to hear.  

I am an old man who is trying not to be so set in his ways.  I'm still struggling to be aware and be reflective of the world around me.   I've learned so much from so many of my fellow gardeners who are willing to share their knowledge and experiences with an old man in Carondelet.  What a grace-filled world of gardeners.  

I am grateful to so many folks who have helped me along the way.  Those in the past and those in the present and future.  Thank you!  The words of the day for this Wednesday in Lent:  Thank you!  The write Anne Lamott once said her favorite prayers are:  Thanks!  Wow!  Help!  Thanks!  Wow!  Help!  Amen!

It's a bit cloudy and chilly this Tuesday morning in Spring.  We should see a bit of rain this afternoon.  Today is filled with appointments and paperwork.  Up early and ready to tackle the work.  

We recently returned from a few days out of town.  We haven't traveled much since the pandemic, and this was a longer getaway for us.  When we both retired, we made a decision to create a life we didn't need or want to escape from.  We did some home renovations, and I created the garden I always wanted.  Our home became sanctuary.  Jon Kabat-Zinn once said, "Wherever you go, there you are."  We took that to heart.  We didn't realize how much so until we left.  Don't get me wrong, we had a lovely time in the mountains and enjoyed the beauty but by the third day we were both longing for our sanctuary.  

We are fortunate to have created a retreat where we can sit with our eyes closed, turn on some music, and tune out the world.  Our Lenten practice this year has included a Sabbath with no technology.  It was a wake-up when we realized how luxurious Sundays became without the interruptions.  This is one Lenten practice we will continue into Ordinary Time.  

I hope you can find the space to look inward and sit with closed eyes and feel your breath go in and out.  Breathe in.  Breathe out.  Move on.  Try to shut out the constant thoughts and anxieties.  Breath in.  Breathe out.  Breathe.  Amen.

Spring is ready burst forth here in the Carondelet Garden.  The buds on the Woodbine are full and just ready to fling open with their beautiful blooms on this first day of Spring.  I'm so ready for Spring and the beginning of full-on Gardening season!  The potato seeds are chitting nicely in the basement.  The onion sets are coming in the next week or so.  The weather looks like it might be stabilizing a bit.  Yep, Spring is here!

It's amazing to know that those tiny buds will burst forth with flowers any day now.  We don't see the flowers, but we "know" they are there.  We have faith and believe even though we do not see.  We just have faith that the flowers will come. I need a bit of that faith in my life. I need to walk around, in my daily life, in an atmosphere of faith.  Seeing God in the face of a stranger.  Seeing God in the flowers and trees.  Seeing God in all things.  Seeing God and noticing that God is here.  God's presence is here, now, and God loves me just the way I am.

It's the First Day of Spring!  The temperatures are beginning to warm up.  The sun is shining.  I'm praying for the ability to align myself with others.  I'm praying to remember that I am called to care for and love others. Love others.  Love.  Amen.

Rest. Relax. Refresh. Renew.
Simple. Ordinary. Sunday.
​

It's March Madness here in the Carondelet Cottage in the Carondelet Garden.  Our beloved Women's basketball Billikens have made school history.  They are the first women's basketball team to win the A10 Conference.  They are also the first women's team to make it to the dance.  It's on national television on ABC at noon this sunny, cold Saturday.  Let's go Bills!

Lots of Basketball this weekend.  I hope you get a chance to cheer on your favorite team.  Have you filled out your bracket yet?  This #supercoololdcouple have South Carolina going all the way.  We love our Billikens but we are nothing if not realistic.  Have a fun weekend.  Be good and be kind to yourself and others on this chilly late, late Winter's day.  That's all the news from the Carondelet Garden.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day to one and all.  Tis a grand day for a bit of craic!

For as long as I can remember my dad and I would gather ourselves and watch "The Quiet Man" with John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara and Barry Fitzgerald and share a wee small of the "good stuff."  He's been gone a good long while now, but we still watch that movie and have a wee dram of the good John Jameson and Sons finest.  It's a great memory and, if you haven't watched it, a GREAT movie.  The fight scene toward the end of the movie between John Wayne and the amazing Victor McLaglen is worth the entire film.  One of John Ford's greatest!

One of my favorite old Irish blessings I will share this glorious day:
May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life's passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Spring is Springing around the Carondelet Garden.  It's simply a magical time of year.  The warmer temperatures of yesterday certainly didn't hurt!  

It's errand day for this old Gardener.  I'm heading out the door to do the mundane things of life.  Renewing car plates, groceries, getting gas, the things that keep us going.  Basically, a simple, ordinary day in our lives.  It's the stuff that needs to be done.

Have a good day.  You deserve it!  We all need a simple, ordinary day filled with a bit of goodness and kindness.  I'm trying to face it with a smile on my face.  That's all the news from the Carondelet Garden.

Beware the Ides of March.  Actually, nothing to beware of with these beauties poking out of the ground and saying, "Howdy!"  I love the early spring Crocus bulbs.  A bit of light and love on a chilly, very late Winter's day.  Spring is just around the corner!

Bil Keane, the cartoonist has a wonderful saying, "Yesterday's the past, tomorrow's the future, but today is a gift.  That's why it is called the present."  The present is here... now.  We have it in our hands, but it won't last forever.  We can choose what today is.  We can enjoy it all and that will be enough.  A gift to be treasured.  An opportunity to enjoy and savor.  I choose to smile and laugh a bit more.  

Today is a bit of grace, undeserved but given freely.  Have some faith, keep the hope alive, and spread a bit of love on this Wednesday in late Winter.  Enjoy your present.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.

Happy 3 1 4 Day!  You don't have to be around this old gardener very long before you realize how much I love my hometown.  I love my little neighborhood of Carondelet.  I love this City and the amazing people who share it with me.  We have our problems without a doubt.  We have a laundry list of things that need improvement, as does any City of our age and size.  The thing about Carondelet and Saint Louis are the amazing people.  The makers, the artists, the gardeners, the chefs and restaurants!  Oh, my goodness, I would stack the restaurants and chefs of Saint Louis up against anyone.  

There is nothing more Saint Louis than reading the paper and enjoying a cup of coffee on the porch.  A bit of music playing in the background.  Neighbors and dogs walking by.  A wave and a hello and sometimes a long conversation that really does solve all of the world's problems.  It's a bit chilly this morning but I had to share an old picture.  I'm looking forward to some porch sitting soon!

I highly recommend hitting the farmers markets, the makers markets, the restaurants and shops of Saint Louis.  Drive by the national chains and fast-food places and visit some Saint Louis originals.  Saint Louis has it all from A to Z (I really am old... I remember the jingle!)  Explore STL!  We're heading out in a bit to visit some shops and grab a bite.  Hope to see you there! That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.

Winter Pansies are an incredible thing!  These were planted back in October of last year and they are still hanging in and blooming.  Talk about resilience.  An absolutely amazing flower.

That was the plan when we planted them last Fall.  The plan was for some beauty and color as we went into late Fall and Winter.  We knew the other plants would dry up, but the Pansies would continue to be green and beautiful.  I like plans.  I like making plans and I expect my plans to work out exactly as I planned.  Unfortunately, life doesn't always follow my plan.  Things happen and my plans go the way of garbage bin.  I forget that just because I make a plan doesn't mean there isn't a bigger plan in place.  Maybe, just maybe, a better plan is in the works that is better than my plan.  Sometimes, it's just not my turn.  Another person's plan is the choice of the day.  A good reminder that I am not the only one who matters.  

It's a cold, cloudy morning here in the Carondelet Garden.  A good day to make a few plans.  A good day to remember to be resilient when those plans don't work out.  A good day to remember that I am not the only one who matters.  A good day to remember.  A good day.  Have a good day Gardening Friends!

Relax. Refresh. Renew.
A simple, ordinary Sunday.  A simple, ordinary Sabbath.  Amen!
​

March Madness has arrived here in the Carondelet cottage in south Saint Louis.  Our beloved Billikens women's basketball team won the A10 Tournament which means they are headed for the dance.  The men's team play number 1 seed VCU today.  You know we'll be tuned in.  If they win they will have an automatic bid to the show.  They won in 2019, let's do it again!

It's chilly, cloudy and there is a chance of rain later today.  It is the perfect day for indoor activities.  I hope you get a chance to watch your favorite team play today.  Lots of great basketball and some good golf as well.  

Be good to yourself.  Be kind to yourself and others as you do you today. Have a great Saturday Gardening Friends!

A chilly, cloudy start to our day here in the Carondelet Garden.  The good news is the hyacinths are in bloom!  Lovely little grape clusters of flowers simply bursting on this Fish Fry Friday in the Second week of Lent.  If you are out and about you just might see these #supercoololdpeople St. Stephen Protomartyr's Fish Fry this afternoon.

We went to a busy restaurant with friends last night.  It was a fun time reconnecting with some folks we hadn't seen in a while and simply catching up.  The problem for this old guy is that I have a terrible time hearing in noisy places.  It seems we live in a noisy, busy world filled with constant distractions.  At the simple, ordinary level of a small table of friends, really hearing them, for me, is a challenge.  It has been this way for several years and I talked to my doctor about it.  Hearing tests were okay.  Normal for a old gardener.  What was different wasn't that I have difficulty understanding.  I have difficulty attending to the conversation individually.  It's harder and harder to block out the extraneous noise to truly listen and attend to the conversation.  My doctor said it is common as we get older, but he is seeing it in people of all ages as distractions become more prevalent.  

Something like that happens to me as well with my inner life.  Listening for that wee small voice is difficult sometimes.  How do I make space? How do I shut out the other noises?  How do I make the space to graciously and lovingly open up and listen?  I start by making space and taking the time to really listen.  I can tell you it is not easy for me.  Yet, when I make the choice and create the space for true relationship and listen, my world changes.  I keep trying to make space.  I keep trying to take the time to really listen for that small voice that reminds me that I am loved, just the way I am, right now.  

"Do not forget all the gifts of God."  -Psalms 103 
It's difficult to forget the gifts of God when walking around and witnessing the glories of Spring.  Even on a grey, chilly, soon to be raining, Thursday in Lent.  The gifts of God are all around us.  The beautiful Snowdrops dotting the ground reminding us that Winter may still come but Spring has sprung.  

Do not forget all the gifts of God.  Yet, so often, I do forget.  I get the "feel sorry for me" blues.  I wake up with the creaky arthritis blues.  The why me? blues.  The ability to forget you are one of the luckiest people on earth is difficult to imagine.  The sad truth is, I do it almost every day.  As I sit in my little cottage in Carondelet surrounded by every possible need being met in extravagant ways.  What do I have to worry about?  How can I forget all the gifts?  How is that even possible?  

I remember an old hymn from my youth, "Count your blessings, name them one by one.  You will be astonished by what God has done."  Counting my blessings today.  Trying to not forget all the gifts of God.  Do not forget all the gifts of God.  Do not forget.  I'm working on that today.  

Here's to a grateful Thursday.  We are counting our blessings in the Carondelet Garden.  Grateful for amazing neighbors and friends.  Grateful for all the gifts of God.  Have a great Thursday Gardening Friends!

The Vinca are already in bloom.  As I look back over the past year I realized that things are blooming about two to three weeks earlier than last year.  I have to admit I'm a bit concerned about Winter making her return but I'm certainly enjoying the early Spring.

It's a chilly grey day here in the Carondelet Garden.  The birds were quiet this morning and we slept in a bit longer than usual.  It was a lovely way to begin the day.  It's errand day for these #supercoololdpeople.  Grocery shopping, and a few other stops along the way.  A simple, ordinary day.  

Here's hoping we all have a simple ordinary day this wet Wednesday in Lent.  Be good and be kind to yourself and others as you do you.  Spread a bit of love around as you travel about.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.

Spring is definitely springing up here in the Carondelet Garden.  Yesterday was the perfect day to start the Winter cleanup as we are getting ready for mulching.  This weekend we are heading out to Seed Saint Louis to pick up our seed potatoes and lettuce.  It's getting close to planting season!  

The mini daffodils were lovely yesterday.  They are a dwarf variety and they are one of my favorites.  I love this time of year when things start popping their heads up out of the ground.  Every day is a new experience.  What a wonder!

Have a wonderful Tuesday.  Be good and be kind to yourself and those you may pass along your way.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.