Winter is Breaking

Supposed to blog. Thought it was going be about my book this month but waiting for my book to be published is like waiting for tulips to bloom in January. Then thought I would write about dormancy, but every other “planty” person is making that their topic. Great minds think alike, I guess. So maybe I’ll write about how sometimes the winter has been so long, that when spring comes, there are some plans that were forgotten for the garden, until reminded by seed catalogs and clients.

 I feel like that for my travels. I had so many plans and the pandemic has been my “winter”. Now that this “winter” seems to be dissipating, I’m remembering the plans of travel. Local travel to neighboring botanical gardens and nurseries and international travel to reserves and sanctuaries.  I think the feeling of excitement is stirring again and it’s been a long time coming. This feeling is enhanced by not being on Instagram for 1 week. I think ever since I’ve joined Instagram, I have never gone one whole week without checking to see what is going on.  What did I miss after 1 week of absence? Absolutely nothing.  Everything looked the same.  I wasn’t impressed and I think that was the point my subconscious was passively trying to get me to understand.  Now let me help you understand:

My goal was just to not get on Instagram for one day and if that didn’t kill me add on an additional day. By the middle of the week, I told myself if I made it, I could check in on the Weekend. The weekend came and I didn’t want to check in. I had to force myself Sunday evening to look. And my subconscious was like “see I told you, nothing changed.” This gives me even more motivation to slowly discontinue my use of social media.  The gardening equivalent would be me convincing some of my gardening clients and friends that are homeowners that they are not missing anything if they choose not to follow the latest gardening trends or get the new plant of the year decided by High end nurseries, growers, and greenhouses (even though at times it is tempting). Last year’s plants were new at one time, just like today’s posts will be lost in the vacuum of whatever social media platform they’re smothered on.  Gardening is gardening and life is life. The basics and simplicity of both can be more fulfilling and enriching than trends.