New Life

This Succulent, which was one rosette, has now multiplied and gifted us with flowers. We feel very lucky indeed. Their cool colors are very soothing.

Plums, on a tree we once believed to be pears! You can imagine our surprise when we learned otherwise. It is certainly a gift eating these. One can grasp a certain indescribable bliss upon tasting them. It is intoxicating.

Behold the incredible beauty of this tree. Indeed, dramatic language is appropriate in describing this plum. As artists, we deeply appreciate the yellows, purples, and reds that offsets the beautiful green of the leaves. Saving this tree has been a labor of love, if not so distressing. It's trunk is clinging to little, and much has been done to prop it, and alleviate weight with pruning. It's worth saving.

Our vegetable garden is growing. In the foreground is butternut squash. Behind it (unseen) are carrots. After that there are fennel, onions, more carrots, green onions, and peas. It is a marvel.

Lettuce. As I picked some last night for a salad, I felt a certain indescribable pleasure that bordered on heavenly. The abundance is overwhelming and beautiful. No matter how much I use I never appear to make a dent. It is delicious and one of the most gratifying eating experiences I've had. Alice Waters is right. There is something deeply satisfying about eating food you have grown. In the upper right corner of the lettuce are beets. To the right of the beets are two tiny tomatoes, growing slowly but surely.

Out front the Lily of the Nile are in full conflagration, like fireworks. I remember when we lived in San Francisco our neighbors had two of these growing in containers. I asked them what they were and they had no idea! A lot has changed since then. This particular variety is especially impressive. The flowers are large, the color incredible. They are neon light purple, a color only nature can produce.

This was once an antique red colored hydrangea, now a beautiful lurid pink, which happily invites our guests out in front. It has given us many beautiful flowers since June gave it to me for an art opening.