What to Expect this Week from an Old Hollow Tree

July 7th - 13th

There is color everywhere now. The roadside ditches have sprung up in a wildflower riot to meet and outshine the green lushness established in June. Everywhere we see the hot colors now; the reds and oranges of the day lilies, the yellows of the black eyed Susans, the pinks of poppies. Hot, hot, hot. Those hot colors are what we are thinking about this week as we see our wildflower meadow project begin to bloom.

An Echo from the Past: Wariness and Wildflowers

Wariness and Wildflowers

Echoes from an Old Hollow Tree is a perennial publication. It is meant to be enjoyed by you every season of every year, and it is something to which you can return when you need a quiet reflection in a noisy neon world.

This time last year, I was walking with my daughter up from the bee hives and she noticed something:

As we were walking back from the bee yard, I pointed out the wildflowers growing by our driveway. Black-eyed Susan, phlox, daisies, and something else…

My little girl inspected. “It looks like a shell.” she proclaimed. “They’re called maiden’s tears.” I explained. She thought for a moment…

“But they’re not sad…”

What a gift it is to have my child proclaim that a flower does not reflect its name, that it is too joyous, too beautiful to have such a sad name.

Have a great week and I will see you Wednesday with the free weekly reflection.

Yours in the green hills of Vermont,

Ryan