Clouds have moved into our very hot days, creating drama and droplets.
July days are now hot and humid, the skies filled with endless fluffy clouds.
Gorgeous sunsets.
Summer in its abundant fullness, happening now.
Pomegranates grow as droopy cacti plump up with rain water.
The sun, creating gasp worthy dances of diffused light.
Pumpkin vines EXPLODE.
I mean explode.
I hunt for little babies.
And then, garden magic.
A tiny white Jack be Little.
Totally unexpected.
I do think what the garden does is magical, don't you?
The way it grows, and morphs, and gifts.
The grapes on the grapevine become sooo sweet, we sit in the heat, eating them slowly.
Warm bursts of nature's confections delight.
More strawberries turn up.
I collect.
Feeling like I am foraging through my veggie garden jungle, and loving it.
The sun needed a break.
The earth so parched.
Although, cloudy days here don't mean it is grey all day.
It means big fluffy clouds block the sun, and it peeks in and out all day in a game of cloud cover and sun hiding.
Summer is so here.
Yawn…
( I LOVE that spotted tongue, and it's owner)
We scurry around, sniffing the earth that comes to life with water droplets.
The scent of rain in the desert makes your mouth water.
(I LOVE that fluffy softest tail, and it's owner)
Sunflower power.
The giant zinnias pop open quickly, more and more coming to life.
Leaves unfurling layer by layer, until they are full and fluffy.
We nibble purple flowers that taste like garlic.
Yes garlic, society garlic.
My old neighbor digs up rocks at her new place, finding odd rocks amongst the river rock.
She thinks they might be roots and gives me three.
I say they might be dahlia tubers.
I plant them 2 months ago, and lo and behold…
Yellow dahlias now bloomimg.
I love free treasures from the earth as such.
Black Eyed Susans self seeded everywhere.
I roam around, with my colander of treats.
The tiny white pumpkin, glowing like a night sky orb.
And I think, yes yes.
There is magic in a garden.
There is.
The fairies know, they know.
Must be why it heals the soul the way it does.
Makes everything better.
Those moments in the garden.
Earth and sprout and petal and gift.
Healing souls of humans and insects and animals.
Just like that.
Are you being emotionally healed and loved and cared for by a garden this summer?
One you tend, or one you visit?
One you dream of?
Love, Vanessa
ps: Ghostly chatter…
Did any of you go see The Conjuring yet?
Was it very very scary?
I have been listening to interviews that Andrea Perron is doing, she is one of the real life daughters from the family that the movie is based on. (Andrea actually wrote a series of books about their lives, a trilogy, the 3rd installment to be released soon, have you read House of Darkness House of Light?)
One thing I love is that, Vera Farmiga's character is that of real life Lorraine Warren.
She is the lovely older woman you have seen on some episodes of Paranormal State, if you watched that show? (show snippet with Lorraine)
I want to see The Conjuring, but growing up with so many family ghost stories told by my gran, I needn't much help scaring the pantaloons off myself. So, I am not sure if I will see it.
Who am I kidding? I will. I just don't know when?
But should I?
Eeeek!
Your garden looks so beautiful and what a great beginning of the harvest.
I don’t know the movie, but I will have a look see ; )
Have a great day.
How Beautiful!
You live such a rich and magical life. So very inspiring you are!
The little baby boo has me excited for the coming season. However I will stay in the summer’s warm sun for a little longer.
I saw the previews for that movie, looks scary!!!
Hugs,
Susan
It is definitely on my movie list and if i make it there before you i will let you know…Hubby yawns at scary movies while i jump and squeal and cover my eyes….with his logical nature he misses out on all the fun! 🙂 I love a good scare. It was on our ‘to do ‘list this weekend but i don’t think we are gonna make it…maybe midweek for a matinee……Hugs!!!!deb
Even if I had only one minute I would love to be in your beautiful garden, all the smells of things growing and blooming… amazing.
Movies like that are intriguing to me. I’ve lost some sleep from watching them but I always come back for more. I do want to see this one.
Thank you for sharing.
I love love love your garden! I keep peeking under leaves looking for baby pumpkins, but haven’t found any yet. Your garden inspires me with mine. I do feel like my garden is my sanctuary. I can go out and just sit or weed and I’ll feel better almost instantly.
I haven’t seen “The Conjuring” yet, but I plan to. Can I tell you a little secret? I’m one of those people who can see/hear/communicate with the dead. So I’m always interested in real life encounters. Have you seen a show called “The Dead Files”? It’s on Travel Channel on Friday nights? You should see it. It is pretty cool.
I love that baby white pumpkin!
love & blessings
~*~
I think a matinee is the bestest!!!
Miss Linda, I am like you….. I freak out, and yet… back for more
😉
I agree Susan, I loooove Autumn, but am in no way ready to plunge – because
I dont want time to move by so fast at all…. I need to stop and savor,
the speed of time is too much…. yay summmmmmer!
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 7/21/2013 3:17:50 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
Ooooooooooooooo, we need more of your tales Laura,
please!!!
Gardening… Such a simply stunning, simply simple, simply healing hobby. Your garden, flowers, and babies are so precious. <3
I literally just *sighed* with that gardening feeling. You know what I mean…total relaxation looking at your pretty pictures. You’re growing grapes, too? Wow. My white eggplants were left too long and they’ve matured into their adult yellow stage. It’s been raining so much, I forgot about them. Oh well, guess I’ll use them for seeds and plant them for next time. 🙂
Re: “The Conjuring” — my friends who are avid horror movie buffs said it was scary but not gory. That is exactly what I prefer. I might wait until it comes out on DVD and see it around Halloween time, to get me in the Sp0oKy mood.
Eeeeekk!! I am so excited to see The Conjuring !! (Or maybe just scared) I MUSTsee it because I am a HUGE fan of Paranormal State and Lorraine Warren!!!! Did you know that the scary doll in the movie is based off of a real haunted raggedy Ann doll? Scary right?! And your garden photos have me excited to start my own garden this summer! I have been buying all sorts of seeds and I can’t wait to get planting but it has been pouring rain nonstop here, the rain even killed my little pumpkin vine :(. But I did plant a mango seed and it is growing (YAYY!) Your little ghost white pumpkin babe is precious!!
Ahhh, there is nothing more healing and magical than a garden. I love your garden posts deeply. It makes me happy to know that such a beautiful unblemished place so full of life exists. I’m looking forward to one day leaving the city to have one of my own. In the meantime, a tiny courtyard it is 😉
Blessings
Andrea
Love the telling of ghost stories, but not good at watching scary movies.
Your garden is abundant and wonderful. What a treasure.
It’s been crazy busy here and I didn’t get a chance to leave a comment earlier, but I have come back to peek at these beautiful photos several times over the last day or so!
They are so intense with garden loveliness, I can almost smell the warm sunshine glowing on the soil.
True eye candy for the soul!
Ohhh, Gary and I almost went to see The Conjuring today, but I chickened out. I read a scary article about it. Some of the theaters have had priests protesting and asking people not to enter the theater. They’re telling people that by going and listening and seeing and opening yourself up to darkness, you’re inviting evil into your life!
I know, I know….that always happens with the very scariest movies. I think there were priest protests when the Exorcist first came out.
But…it gave me the heebie jeebies, so I opted to wait another week!
I’m still scared at night from watching Evil Dead a few nights ago.
xoxo
Kim
Gerushia’s New World
I dream of having a garden one day with a little cottage somewhere in the country.
One day. I agree with someone else watch The Conjuring at a matinee showing. You’ll sleep better.
I AM being emotionally cared for, healed and nourished by our summer garden, I’m so glad you are too my dear, in your stunning garden which entrances me so.
Beautiful as always Vanessa. Thank you for sharing your world with us. Its a nice escape for me to visit. I am always inspired. I can’t wait to have some quiet time to listen to the interview with Andrea Perron. I looked at her book on kindle a while back. So interesting!
Yes yes saw The Conjuring! Love the Warrens and all the paranormal researchers out there, so interesting. I was a big fan of Paranormal State back in the day, I don’t know if you know but Ryan Buell has pancreatic cancer 🙁 But back to the film! It was sooooo good! I recommend it highly!
My garden is so, so dead.
That white pumpkin is perfect.
I love your photos.
Jenn, I am floored about Ryan!! I LOVED him. This is horrible,
he is crazy young, oh no no no!!
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 7/26/2013 2:40:48 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
My daughter who is 34 saw one of those paranormal movies and she still says she has the creeps from watching it. I even watched ‘The Woman in Black’ with Daniel Radcliff and that was freaky enough. Now I catch myself looking for shadows in my house late at night when everyone else is asleep, especially after midnight, the ‘haunting hour’…we have a couple of loooong, spooky, narrow hallways in our house.
I refuse to spend the night at Laurelwood our Victorian showcase house. I think the huge, ancient oak trees on the property are portals during the year at some point. Especially with the huge slab of concrete which lies under the two most enormous oak trees, which is the exact shape of a cover for a tomb, which the previous lady owner said she believes the original builder of the house lies buried under the slab. (I don’t know how much truth is in that story, but I do remember around the time the owner died there were concrete workers placing the slab under the trees!) Lovely, spookiness!!!
Oh…also, my daughter read one of the true accounts of a haunted house up in Oregon or Washington where people disappeared and were never seen again. Very creepy! That book gave her nightmares for a while when she was younger. I’m having a hard enough time reading ‘Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children’…my youngest sis gave it to me…we do tend to be intrigued by the ‘after life’ or the paranormal…
Your garden is sooooo very magical! I love it so. And I adore that wee white pumpkin baby. 🙂 How adorable is Matty yawning. I love it when furry babies do “human” types of things – like yawn, stretch, sneeze, wink and even burb! 🙂 I know – I am silly. 🙂