A ViewFrom My Porch

I went outside on my porch to check my winter garden which, as you can imagine, is looking pretty sad. The unexpected cold has taken a toll and several plants look like they may not come back. Our wonderful garden guru writes a column in our local newspaper and she tells us not to worry and not to cut anything back because spring will come and the plants will come back. I hope she is right because right now they look as dead as a door nail. I gazed up at the sky and saw this beautiful sight so had to go and get my camera and show you our storm clouds. The trees are in an open field leading to the ocean, and that tiny strip of deep blue just above the tree line is my view of the ocean from my porch. Those wires are where the birds come and settle hoping for bird seed to be put into the bird houses in the yard. On the left is smoke reaching for the sky and that comes from the mill that is making plywood twenty-four seven. They tell us that there is no residue in that smoke, but we all know better as we sneeze and cough and see little green spittle from the large chip piles in the open field. Look at that cloud, it was massive and it dropped a whole lot of rain, no complaints, the garden can only prosper from the gift from heaven.

Storm Clouds. Have you ever seen a storm come in/above the ocean wide/the pale blue skies begin to hide/behind a long bleak cloud/turning gray and partly black/whipping up the tide.
The drenching rain begins to fall/and brings a howling wind/frothy waves build up tall/stirring up the sea/hiding floating buoys and fishing boats/ beneath the swells so high/the fishermen batten down/the lines they have to tie/
The horizon line seems missing/as the clouds descend the sky/leaving misty/eerie shadows/on the sea so wide.

I hope you have a storm or two to make your gardens grow. There is nothing like a good storm to clean the air. Put on your raincoat, galoshes too, then take a walk in the break of a storm and feel the softness of the air and the God given aroma of life. Make this day a soft day, relax and enjoy.