Through The Garden Gate: July, Lunacy
By Leslie Watkins “It is the very error of the moon. She comes more near the earth than she was wont. And makes men mad.”— William Shakespeare, Othello Extreme eccentricity, intermittent insanity related to phases of the moon, and an un-soundness of mind sufficient to incapacitate one for civil transactions, are descriptions of some […]
June, Ticks Suck!!!
By Leslie Watkins Ticks really, really suck. They are reported to suck on more than 300,000 Americans each year, and actual numbers are believed to be far higher. Migratory birds carry the ticks around the world and it’s becoming a pandemic. And can you guess where tick headquarters is located? New England has the greatest […]
Through the Garden Gate
May, Signs of Spring By Leslie Watkins Signs and symbols can be found everywhere. A magnificent red cardinal appears at the bird feeder… more than just another bird visitor, cardinals are also regarded as messengers from our dearly departed. Considered in that way, we may be reminded to take a little time in our […]
Through the Garden Gate
April, Tolerance, Empathy and Kindness By Leslie Watkins As with most of our life choices, our gardens reflect who we are and what is important to us. Gardens can be characterized as welcoming, natural, fussy or formal. They can be simple or complex, secluded or openly accessible. Caring for your garden may be casual, high […]
Marchh, Persephone Returns
After spending the past four months searching for her missing daughter, Demeter (a.k.a. Mother Nature) will finally be reunited with the lovely Persephone on March 20, 2017, at 6:28 a.m. Persephone will be released from the underworld at the vernal equinox. This marks the beginning of spring and the reawakening of the earth in the […]
Through the Garden Gate
February, Precious Snowflakes By Leslie Watkins “Every crystal was a masterpiece of design and no one design was ever repeated.”–Wilson Bentley Avalanches are sudden, unstoppable forces of nature. They gain mass, volume and momentum as they sweep down mountainsides. But even the mightiest of avalanches is made up of many small, harmless, fragile things—snowflakes. […]
Through The Garden Gate
December, Divine Pleasures By Leslie Watkins After the hustle and bustle of autumn activities, the comfy chair by the fire looks very inviting. Even if we were not able to cross all the items off the to-do list, the weather dictates that enough is enough. We are ready for a long winter’s rest. The […]
Through The Garden Gate
November, Transition By Leslie Watkins Along with death and taxes, change is among the very few things of which we can be certain. An ability to manage change, with a degree of agility in making adjustments, will determine whether we land on our feet or not. Having a brain that allows us to predict […]
Through The Garden Gate—October 2016
October, “Going Native” By Leslie Watkins Partly influenced by current economics many people today are downsizing to create simple, sustainable and inexpensive lifestyles. As people and events around the world become more familiar to us we see the disparities, and our understanding grows. Studies indicate that we are not following in our parents footsteps […]
Through the Garden Gate
September, Life En Plein Air By Leslie Watkins Until recent history, human animals have lived mostly out of doors. In the current age of runaway consumerism and modern convenience, we have shifted from spending most of our daylight hours outside to an average of just 90 minutes a day, and that’s in summer! We […]
