"The garden is a mirror of the heart."

After weeks of pulling, planting, pruning, watering and fishing the above statue out of the pond (the neighbour's cat likes to knock it off its perch), I can finally sit back and enjoy my garden.

Now that I am living here full time, I can truly appreciate the ebb and flow of the garden as one variety of perennial blooms and dies and another takes its place.  The colors and textures are constantly changing.  I love this garden which is a tribute to the lady who originally planted it and to me; the one who has painstakingly brought it back to some form of order - if there can be such a thing in a perennial garden!  It is the closest replica of an English garden that I have ever been able to achieve in Ontario.  It is my baby - I fret about the plants that aren't thriving; I discipline the ones that threaten to take over;  I fuss with the pond, cleaning the pump filter and trying to get the right ph balance (the water is still green but at least the plants and fish seem to be thriving); I am proud of the size of my tomato plants and I despair when my roses get eaten by insects. 
Now that the grass doesn't need cutting 2 or 3 times a week and the pots of annuals and the vegetable garden are planted, I can sit at my loft kitchen window and stare at the garden for hours - well maybe minutes since I don't ever sit for hours - not my style! 

Sitting in the garden for any length of time is a bit more difficult for me because I always spot a weed that needs pulling or a pot that needs watering.  I have four sitting areas in the back garden, each with its own particular outlook and my b and b guests seem to enjoy sitting out as much as I do which adds to my pleasure.  I even like the way the garden looks at night; no small feat since getting the garden lights to light up the right spot while swatting away mosquitos in the semi-darkness is a frustrating task.  But the end result is worth it even if it only lasts for a few months every year.