These Are a Few of My Favorite… Views?!

With all the lovely plants I have in my garden (and I really have a lot), there are plenty of pleasant places throughout the year that I can gaze upon.  So it makes perfect sense that the most cluttered and untidy part would be my favorite, right?

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I think I might understand why, and I’ll have to get a little “Freudian” to explain.  It all begins with work.  Like many people, I work indoors, in my case in a classroom.  I have a second story room with big windows and if I look out in the right direction, I have a view of some large, pretty broadleaf trees in the distance.  I once had a better view with even more trees, but then a new classroom building was put in and part of that view disappeared.  Darned progress.

The problem is that a view of trees isn’t as good as being out in them.  I have always loved being outdoors, especially the mountains.  However, the mountains are a little ways off from me, so daily visits aren’t quite feasible.

It just so happens that this untidy corner of my yard to me feels like it’s in the woods, even though I live in the suburbs.  The large elm with its crooked branches is bare during the winter, then becomes this lovely green umbrella of shade as the weather warms.  The Liquid Amber trees are a fiery color in autumn.  Over the fence in the neighbors yard stand three giant pine trees.  The fence itself is weathered grey with patches of lime green from the mosses that have grown there.  We have a pile of logs from trees that we have removed from our yard over the years that we have been slowly working on cutting up and using for our fireplace.  Fallen leaves are always scattered everywhere.

It also just happens to be the view I see every morning as I’m getting ready for work.  One last moment of feeling like I’m in my own little chunk of forest before heading downtown on the crowded freeway.  One last moment of peace before what is typically a hectic day.