Sunday, June 16, 2013

Grieving the loss of a loved one in a garden of healing

Recently a dear friend of mine passed away from cancer.  She loved her garden and found inspiration in many places, including my garden.    We shared cuttings and helped each other in the garden from time to time.  She lived a few blocks away from me so it was easy to see each other.  She loved my jungle look and replicated it in her garden.  The tropical plants, small rock path slightly curving


is very similar to my design.  She made hers more formal with stepping stones and black plastic edging.   Hers path opened up to a grassy area enclosed by a fence.  A friend of hers recently confided to me she took him to my garden to see it a few years ago while I was away from the house at work.   She told him she wanted her garden to look like mine.  

This beautiful Queen Crape Myrtle I planted years ago sure overcame a challenging time.  She had a cutting growing in the corner of her yard in a pot and could not decide where to plant it.  Years had gone by and the roots extended way down through the drainage holes into the soil.  We could not even lift up the pot, we had to dig it out and cut the tree away from the container.  Since we could not get all of the roots, I trimmed the branches.  Luckily it did not die during transplanting.  It has since thrived and as you can see above it looks great. 

She loved her cat so much.  This plant is called cats whiskers and grows prominently near the house entrance.  It is nice to make a garden match your personality.  This garden is bold, colorful and full of life, just like its owner was.  


Good bye my dear, and happy planting up above.  

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10 comments:

  1. life smacks you ...with reality...it is sad to lose someone you care about...someone who you think gets you and your love of plants (that you had in common)...she would would be thanking you for your friendship right now...

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  2. what lovely memories you created, and sorry that you lost a good friend.

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  3. Oh Robert ... I'm so sorry your friend had to go. Thank you for sharing your memories of this passionate gardener and her works with us. If it's true that "You're never closer to God than when you're in the garden," maybe her spirit will recognizably reach out to you from time to time in your professional or personal gardening projects. <3

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    1. Oh Belinda, I think she did. I visited her garden on the other day and saw a butterfly, I am sure it was her!

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  4. Wonderful tribute, Robert. I, too, recently lost a friend, one of my "Queen Bees", to cancer. She loved her gardens as well. Suzi

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    1. I forgot how hard it is to lose someone close. I have been very lucky for a long time not to have to go through the pain of loss.

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  5. Thank you for sharing this poignant post. The pictures are lovely and it is a great tribute to your dear friend. I can relate to it as I lost my brother a year ago. We planted a Dogwood tree in our yard as a memorial. We hope it thrives for years to come. Thanks again...

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    1. Wow, so sorry to hear about the loss of your brother. That was wonderful you planted a tree in his honor.

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  6. I'm so sorry about your friend. Her yard is gorgeous. I'm so thankful she had you to make her life beautiful. I feel blessed to have you as a friend, so I know what she had. I'm here if you want to talk. I'll leave Skype on, but I'll be invisible, because I'm avoiding someone. Just call. *hugs and kisses*

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    1. Thank you Deborah for your kind thoughts, they are very soothing indeed.

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