April arrived fluttering like a
butterfly-
Resplendent,
full of colour in my back yard,
Saying hello to
purples and mauves
huddled together
in the tall black pot.
His iridescence beamed-
on reds, oranges and pinks
lined up like
little ballerinas
waiting for their
teacher to enter
the studio
in their fluffy tutus.
The birds sang songs with
sweet melodies
to please April
while
his furtive flights
touched
yellows and greens
peeping through the
larger trees.
The whites were the first to notice
April's concealed cunning,
but they kept quiet.
Cloaked in Dust,
stormed April one day
and smothered the colours
in a sandy veil.
All that shone
Was gone.
Breath-
Stifled by the tiny particles of
sand and dust
Clogging.
Coughing.
Into a thousand pieces
my heart broke
when I stepped out
and saw
the blushing brides
burdened
with burqaas
so heavy
they broke their backs.
A few
lay martyred on the sand covered
bricks.
Scenes of Syria
on the BBC
after a bomb attack
dust and debris
children’s faces
innocent eyes
but no smiles
questions buried
under the sandstorm of egos
caked in mud
dried and dying
young.
Why?
I asked.
And took the hose out.
April sighed
and delivered his message-
'Life happens when we are making
plans.'
'Stop the strutting you fool!'
he chided.
‘these are not your flowers
your back yard
your garden
YOU belong to them
You are at their service.
Get up.
Dust off.
Stop whining.
Wash off the expectation.
Prune that ego.
Open your eyes
and look at the gold that
I sprinkled
to
change
your Perspective
You don't own.
You belong.
It’s a
sandstorm.
It’s
not Syria.'
*************
Perspective is a clever companion.
A fellow yogi mentioned the word when I was complaining about how horrid the back yard looked and how I had spent the entire morning cleaning up.
It made me stop and think and the poetry (or the words above) demanded to be written.
Feeling rich and abundant-
owning nothing.
I belong to the sand particles
and will become one someday.
Such riches need to be shared.
So, here are some shots of the Garden Party-
the before, the after and the after after
the sandstorm...
Purples and mauves...Verbenas, Alyssums, Violas, Scabiosa grew together this season.
Snipping or cutting (called deadheading) the old blooms really encourages new ones.
So don't be shy- snip away.
Reds, Oranges and Pinks in their tutus.
This year, Hibiscus plants and Gazanias flourished happily:)
The first lot of Zinnia seedlings I bought died- almost all of them. A few of the plants that I grew from seed did well. This flower is from the second lot I bought from a different nursery. They're doing fine.
Morning Glory grew gloriously well this year- it's the easiest plant to grow from seed and its voracious appetite to grow and climb is insatiable.
It gives and gives...just make sure it gets a bit of shade when the sun is too hot and lots of water-
it gets thirsty.
It reminds me of my teenager son- walking stomach- growing taller every day:)
Trailing geraniums filled many baskets and kept me from doing the laundry many a times.
I stand and stare for hours at these beauties.
Just stand and stare-
sometimes
with love
and sometimes
with wonder
but always
with gratitude.
Thank you for
filling my life
with
colours of joy
and
generosity.
I'm not sure what this plant is called. A friend calls is Cat's Tail-
please enlighten me if you know.
It's a slow starter but very very sturdy.
It doesn't die in the sweltering heat of Doha's summer.
You can use is to fill baskets and pots.
I usually plant these with petunias and the asparagus fern- so that by the time the petunia is bidding us farewell, these beauties come out and say hello-
the party carries on...
Yellows and Greens...
Snapdragons are the easiest to grow in Doha. Just keep deadheading the old blooms.
Lantana
"The Whites were first to notice..."
Sweet Alyssums
Seductive Gardenia
Intoxicating Jasmine- Mogra
Asparagus in bloom.
Cloaked in Dust,
stormed April one day
and sprinkled gold.
GOLD DEPOSITS on my windscreen.
'Why?'
I thought,
And took the hose out...
Fresh,
Clean
and
Radiant...
Lest we forget
that
each
moment counts.
Moments make days
and days make lives.
'We live our lives- the way we live our days.'
words I read somewhere,
I can't recall where.
I live my moments.
I
stand
and
stare
and smell
the roses-
any chance I get.
A dear friend gave me this rose bush when she moved.
Oh! You have to smell the sweet sweet smell to get a whiff of heaven.
Thank you Mimi:) xx
I was out in the yard when the news of the earthquake in Nepal came through.
I pray for the souls and the survivors and carry on.
Life's fickle
and
Death's
unpredictable.
'WHY'
comes back to haunt.
I breathe in
and
grab the moment.
Life
and
Death-
the
inseparable
cosmic
companions
dance
to
show me
where
I belong.
Perspective is a clever companion.
A fellow yogi mentioned the word when I was complaining about how horrid the back yard looked and how I had spent the entire morning cleaning up.
It made me stop and think and the poetry (or the words above) demanded to be written.
Feeling rich and abundant-
owning nothing.
I belong to the sand particles
and will become one someday.
Such riches need to be shared.
So, here are some shots of the Garden Party-
the before, the after and the after after
the sandstorm...
Purples and mauves...Verbenas, Alyssums, Violas, Scabiosa grew together this season.
Snipping or cutting (called deadheading) the old blooms really encourages new ones.
So don't be shy- snip away.
Reds, Oranges and Pinks in their tutus.
This year, Hibiscus plants and Gazanias flourished happily:)
The first lot of Zinnia seedlings I bought died- almost all of them. A few of the plants that I grew from seed did well. This flower is from the second lot I bought from a different nursery. They're doing fine.
Morning Glory grew gloriously well this year- it's the easiest plant to grow from seed and its voracious appetite to grow and climb is insatiable.
It gives and gives...just make sure it gets a bit of shade when the sun is too hot and lots of water-
it gets thirsty.
It reminds me of my teenager son- walking stomach- growing taller every day:)
Trailing geraniums filled many baskets and kept me from doing the laundry many a times.
I stand and stare for hours at these beauties.
Just stand and stare-
sometimes
with love
and sometimes
with wonder
but always
with gratitude.
Thank you for
filling my life
with
colours of joy
and
generosity.
I'm not sure what this plant is called. A friend calls is Cat's Tail-
please enlighten me if you know.
It's a slow starter but very very sturdy.
It doesn't die in the sweltering heat of Doha's summer.
You can use is to fill baskets and pots.
I usually plant these with petunias and the asparagus fern- so that by the time the petunia is bidding us farewell, these beauties come out and say hello-
the party carries on...
Yellows and Greens...
Snapdragons are the easiest to grow in Doha. Just keep deadheading the old blooms.
Lantana
"The Whites were first to notice..."
Sweet Alyssums
Seductive Gardenia
Intoxicating Jasmine- Mogra
Asparagus in bloom.
stormed April one day
and sprinkled gold.
GOLD DEPOSITS on my windscreen.
'Why?'
I thought,
And took the hose out...
Fresh,
Clean
and
Radiant...
Lest we forget
that
each
moment counts.
Moments make days
and days make lives.
'We live our lives- the way we live our days.'
words I read somewhere,
I can't recall where.
I live my moments.
I
stand
and
stare
and smell
the roses-
any chance I get.
A dear friend gave me this rose bush when she moved.
Oh! You have to smell the sweet sweet smell to get a whiff of heaven.
Thank you Mimi:) xx
I was out in the yard when the news of the earthquake in Nepal came through.
I pray for the souls and the survivors and carry on.
Life's fickle
and
Death's
unpredictable.
'WHY'
comes back to haunt.
I breathe in
and
grab the moment.
Life
and
Death-
the
inseparable
cosmic
companions
dance
to
show me
where
I belong.
