Summer Solstice arrives Thursday June 21st at 4:07 AM Mountain Time (6:07 AM EST). This marks the point when the northern hemisphere is at its furthest tilt toward the sun. Observers in ancient times would have noticed the sun moving in a northward direction and then stopping and heading back the other way. One … Read more
Owning Our Story – this week’s mindful focus, inspired by amaranth Every plant has a story. Amaranth is ancient. It came back into our modern awareness about twenty years ago as a healthy, high protein, grain-like choice. I will get to the story in a moment, but one reason I’ve been thinking of amaranth is … Read more
If you drive through my neighborhood in mid-summer, you will see wild morning glories in almost every yard. But here is the thing, they are not morning glories at all. They are bindweed flowers (Convolvulus arvensis} masquerading as morning glories. And the name bindweed tells you most of what you need to … Read more
Like Bilbo Baggins, I am a reluctant traveler. There have been way too many travel days in the last few months. The reasons for leaving home-base have been positive – seeing the people I love and attending cool workshops. But at the end of it all, I’d rather be home with my … Read more
I spent the last week in Qigong teacher training at Kripalu Retreat Center. The training was wonderful, and I will write more about it in future blogs. But what I want to focus on this morning is simply cultivating our awareness of stillness, which is a part of Qigong and many other mindfulness practices. It … Read more
Everything Changes When I started gardening many moons ago, it was impossible to get organic produce at local stores. I also had a house full of children. Growing plants we could make meals with was a top priority. However, all of that has changed. Drifting Toward Easy My work schedule is hectic, there aren’t … Read more
Dandelions and Marches What do dandelions have in common with young people and the March for Our Lives? It’s not a riddle. They are prolific and beautiful. And they embody strength in numbers. Until yesterday, I was simply going to write about dandelions, one of my favorite weedy medicinal herbs. Dandelions have lots of attributes … Read more
The Strange Practice of Daylight Saving Time Those of us living in the U.S. (excepting Arizona and Hawaii) have lost an hour this morning thanks to Daylight Saving Time (DST). The reasons for changing the time seem a little fuzzy to me. Originally (1918) the goal seemed to be about saving energy, but research shows … Read more
Pruning the Honey Locust Tree The winter-sleeping honey locust in my front yard is barren. In the summer the tree is green, full, and beautiful with graceful feathery leaves. In the fall it turns golden with long flat seed pods. Winter, as with most deciduous trees, has it looking a little like a skeleton and … Read more
The mindfulness focus this week is circle of influence…contemplating the reach of our actions and what if anything we can do to change the world. Sadly this is not inspired by the garden, but instead by the ongoing gun violence in this country. It is easy to be overwhelmed by … Read more
