One of my most comforting pleasures is sitting by a sunny window bathing myself in the warmth of the sun’s rays coming through. I’m doing that right now and I feel like I’m wrapped in warm velvet. I am such a happy cat in fact, that I would be licking my paws right now if I didn’t have to type.
This sun and warmth lead my mind to thoughts of spring, but as I look outside all I see are bare branches and random piles of dirty snow that the sun never got to.
I have a project waiting that I have been putting off for a day just like this one. My friend Bev gave me an herb garden kit for Christmas and today is “the day” for putting it together.
My father was a gardener extraordinaire who would get himself through a Pennsylvania January by studying all of the seed catalogues that came to the house. Planting this herb garden is better than logging seed selections into an order sheet though. I’ve already garnered at least a pound of pleasure through just the anticipation of planting these herbs and my pleasure pulse will only continue to quicken as I check daily for the first sprouting, the healthy growth and the eventual enjoyment of the fresh-cut flavors. I will ride this wave all the way to the budding out of the bushes there outside my sunny window!
The seeds included in the kit are; thyme, curled parsley, chives, sweet basil, and cilantro and the pots fit on a rack in a sort-of pyramid arrangement that will be lovely when my babies start to grow. I cut the seed packets at the corner tips, just the way my dad showed me and poured ten tiny seeds into my hand. The hand is a little different now, but the feeling of excitement is just the same as it was back then. I can hear Dad telling me to spread ‘um out a little. “Don’t cover ‘um up too deep.” I know, Dad. You taught me all this stuff.
So, now I have my seeds in their pots with the little labels that my bossy left brain insisted I stick on them. Next, they get soaked with water from a spray bottle so as not to push the seeds around and voila, my little pots of hope are racked and ready. You need the help of your mind’s eye at this point in the process, but it won’t be long.
Thanks Bev. Thanks Dad. I’m glad we could all get together for this little project. I feel sure now that spring is a comin’ and that sunshine pouring through this window will keep me and my herbies happy til it gets here. In the meantime, I’ll keep you posted on our progress.
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