Who among us is entirely free? Many are the constraints that bind our lives to one degree or another. Limitations come in numerous forms. They can be physical, financial, familial and work-related.
However we choose to view life鈥檚 varied constraints, instinctive wisdom directs us to seek moments of personal liberty.
The young man who constructed an underground area near Toronto had this goal in mind. The structure was no 鈥渢unnel鈥� of nefarious intent, but simply a place to 鈥渉ang out.鈥� He sought sanctuary.
The need is strong to find places of sanity in a world that seems at times to have gone mad. And as external forces do their best to keep us alarmed, we turn to places of security where our minds can become freed of anxiety and fear, even if only for a short while.
Our gardens, whether they be large properties or a collection of plants in pots, cannot cancel our cares but they can offer respite from them.
A friend recently passed me an article about gardens created in areas of instability and conflict. One was planted for the benefit of soldiers stationed near Kabul. The young soldiers appreciate the space filled with flowers and greenery. For them, green represents peace.
This and other such gardens in countries plagued by bloodshed speak of resistance and survival. Nurturing them is therapy.
Behind my garden shed is a wild woodland area that is like a big, airy room with fencing and the back of the shed forming its walls and a high canopy of cedar branches as a ceiling. This is place of retreat, an oasis of ease with a rough plank bench to rest on. Places to sit out in a garden are to be cherished. They represent sweet, if temporary, escape.
I try to pay attention in the garden, enough to take note of plantings that offer special pleasure. Over the past few weeks I鈥檝e been relishing two plantings of Omphalodes verna (navelwort) spreading low carpets of pretty green foliage dotted liberally with clear blue flowers. The plantings thrive and expand in lean, root-ridden soil. They endure. The sight of them is wonderfully soothing.
Other plantings reassure by sparkling with vibrant life. I remember looking down on one summer day to see a group of vivid orange calendula flowers clustered around a robust parsley plant. The combination was an instantaneous, super-natural mood elevator.
May this Easter weekend be for you and your family a peace-filled, lovingly convivial time away from care.
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Transparent floral design. For two years the Victoria Flower Arrangers Guild has been planning to bring international floral designer Hitomu Gilliam to Victoria to present a floral design program for the flower loving public as well as for guild members.
Hitomi has guest-designed throughout North America and in England, Japan, Hong Kong, Bermuda, Singapore and Australia. She brings her well-travelled knowledge of the latest trends from around the world to offer audiences the best floral creativity possible.
On April 14, from 6:30 to 10 p.m. in the Garth Homer Centre, 813 Darwin Ave. in Saanich, Hitomi Gilliam will present 鈥淭ransparent Designs: the latest in floral technology.鈥�
This design concept aims to preserve airiness and allow light to pass through. It is in contrast to designs of recent years featuring tightly clustered flowers that lose their individual identity in the density of an arrangement. Transparent design brings back the attention to the individual personality of flowers and surrounds them with light and space.
The guild鈥檚 Joel Fair tells me that 鈥淗itomi is a mentor to many of us; her presence in Victoria is greatly anticipated.鈥�
Tickets at $50 are available at Poppies Floral Art, Mayfair Flowers and Jennings Florists in Victoria, Browns in Sidney, and Art Knapp Garden Centre in Saanich. Or, call 250-818-2156.
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GARDEN EVENTS
VHS meeting. The Victoria Horticultural Society will meet on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Garth Homer Centre, 813 Darwin Ave. Allan Mandell, a professional photographer, will present 鈥淎n Artist鈥檚 Eye in the Garden.鈥� Garden photos from North America and Japan will illusrate Allan鈥檚 unique way of seeing. The pre-meeting workshop at 6:30 will feature Dwight Pennell of Integrity Sales & Distributors speaking about fertilizers and soil amendments to build soil health and fertility. vichortsociety.org.
Lily meeting. The Victoria Lily Society will meet on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Salvation Army Citadel, Douglas at McKenzie. Lois Blackmore will give a presentation on rhododendrons. Visitors are welcome.
