Photo credit: Rob Kessel
Category: Homeward Bound Golden Retriever Rescue
To my chosen family
This is the note I found in my inbox this week after failing to post last weekend: “Did I miss it or did it go on vacation this week?”
It’s nice to be missed. But just as the garden winters, gardeners (and bloggers) need to take time to rest, recharge, appreciate the quiet of winter…
and let the true meaning of the holiday spirit sink in. This week at Homeward Bound is about celebrating pups going home in time for Christmas,
and enjoying the company of dogs and friends.
One of our volunteers shared this message today. I could not have said it better:
“It’s such a blessing to find one’s passion in life and be surrounded by those that share the same. I love my given family, but my chosen family and I get each other. We have laughed together, gotten frustrated together and most certainly cried together. I love you all and wish you and yours a blessed 2014!”
I wish you all the same.
Wordless Wednesday: Safe
Wordless Wednesday: Moose
To learn Moose’s story, please visit here: www.homewardboundgoldens.org/blog/2013/11/27/with-gratitude/
Fall’s Grace
“For the Fall of the year is more than three months bounded by an equinox and a solstice. It is a summing up without the finality of year’s end.” ~ Hal Borland
This blank spot in the perennial bed signals the end of a season, as the Dahlias have been lifted and stored for the winter.
The weather this weekend was beautiful after a stormy start to the week, so Daylilies were divided, bulbs planted,
and giant holes filled in the yards where dogs chase bunnies. Who me?
The light is beautiful in the garden at this time of year.
Although most of the brilliant blossoms have faded away, a few remain and it is as if the sheer warmth of the sun bathes the garden in gold;
it soaks up all the magic that goes on here.
Where big dogs come to find homes,
tiny dogs are nurtured,
blind dogs see that they are surrounded by love,
and old dogs can sum up their own seasons in sanctuary and peace.
“No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace, as I have seen in one autumnal face.” ~ John Donne
Wordless Wednesday: Sammie Smiles
Here Comes Santa (Already)
Not much gardening went on this weekend. With Santa visiting Homeward Bound, all the elves were busy getting the dogs dressed in their holiday finest for photos, including a couple here from our friend Rob.
From naughty…
to nice…
we’re getting in the holiday spirit before Thanksgiving so everyone’s pictures will be ready for on-time card mailing this year.
Poor Santa; so exhausted, and he still has to head back to the North Pole to get ready for the big event!
The garden is quiet,
but still colorful enough to be inviting.
Next weekend, it will be time to lift the Dahlias. Until then, have a good week, all.
Wordless Wednesday: The Funny Faces of Sting
In Good Garden Company
“A garden is never so good as it will be next year.”~ Thomas Cooper
It seems there is always another project to prepare the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden for the next season. Last week it was the iris bed;
today, some 400 daffodil bulbs sat waiting to be planted for the spring.
So nothing delighted me more than to see a small army of our gardeners show up today. With Diane,
Peggie,
Ina and camera-shy Maria on hand, the garden was weeded, dead-headed and the bulbs got planted on a beautiful fall weekend day.
We continue to be in the company of frogs…
And these nasty things which have been munching on our Pluot tree.
Ina wanted to save the invaders, but I made caterpillar mush of them instead, and left a bit of evidence behind as a warning to their friends.
Of course, we’re always in the company of dogs, which makes our work a true labor of love.
Summer is another of the dogs from Taiwan. She arrived with a myriad of issues, including cancer.
We have hopefully dispensed with all, but there’s no way to be certain. Anna does not care. It was love at first sight.
An introduction to her Jenni was made.
With approval won, the deal was sealed and Summer went home today.
So did Rollie. There was no hesitation at all when that car hatch opened. Inside he found a fresh new bed and a brand new toy. Jackpot! Happy life Rollie.
Our youth volunteers were out in force as well. It is so encouraging to see a new generation involved in rescue. Henzi is a natural, doting on Ella and Maggie in the garden.
Our nights are getting cooler. The watering has been cut back. And our last Dahlia of the season put on a spectacular display.
The foliage is now as impressive as the flowers that remain.
Fall is on glorious display.
Wordless Wednesday: Remembered
Brought here, by you
“There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they’ll take you.” ~ Beatrix Potter
Gardens for Goldens passed a small milestone this week; 1,000+ followers. When I began this blog two years ago this month I envisioned a simple journal of our efforts to create a place of peace for Homeward Bound’s extended family while hoping to inspire a love of rescue. Through the process of chronicling the garden, I have been blessed to be joined by all of you.
You’ve shared in watching the garden grow from vision to reality…
and in the delight of seeing dogs go home. Yesterday, it was Shaggy Bao – a Old English Sheepdog masquerading as a Golden. He came all the way from Taiwan with his amazing two-colored eyes to find his forever home.
Sometimes, we share in sorrow. This week, it was Sarge, who passed unexpectedly and quietly without a hint to us that it was time to say ‘goodbye.’
Despite the sometimes difficult times, there is a tremendous sense of joy and purpose in what is accomplished here. From seeing new arrivals like Amber,
Oliver
and Maggie coaxed into trust,
to creating a place of quiet and contemplation.
Another blogger I follow described a garden as a relationship…between a person and a bed of soil. For me, the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden and Gardens for Goldens has been about a relationship with all of you. And I am better for it.
“The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it.” ~ John Ruskin
Thank you.
Divide and Conquer
“Gardening is the art that uses flowers and plants as paint, and the soil and sky as canvas.” ~ Elizabeth Murray
The garden looks especially beautiful and welcoming in the fall light.
Though the blooms are fewer, their rich colors pop against a canvas of turning leaves and warm brown grasses.
Ina’s asters have finally arrived, draped over the fence like a bee’s blanket of purple.
Maria, has of course, dressed the garden for fall.
Her holiday displays may not bespeak a memorial garden, but they certainly make a beautiful backdrop for our posing dogs. This is Ella.
Princess and Duke – all new arrivals.
With Maria and Ina both on hand, it was a perfect time to tackle the iris bed.
Peggy and Steve had a good start, but work has called them away. With three of us on scene, we decided to finish the lifting and dividing. From the size of the bulb clumps, it was pretty clear they had been left for years – a first, forgotten effort in the garden.
While Ina and Maria divided, I dug trenches and raised berms in a semi-circle.
We have decided to plant the sunflowers in the center next summer as the Willow Tree has taken their sun. During the other months we will fill with annuals to keep color in the garden year round.
It’s pretty amazing what the three of us can get done in a day when we put our minds (and backs) to it. We went home dirty, tired, but satisfied.
“The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.” ~ Emile Zola
Gardens For Goldens 