How to be a wild flower...

The day I came home to my true, authentic self was the day that I found peace.
-When I realised that I was here
 to be
 a wildflower....

To wander, to ponder, to gather, to savour....the wonder of life & nature.
Have a little look at Katie Daisy's book trailer & you'll understand what I'm talking about.


How to be a Wildflower Book Trailer from Gabriel James on Vimeo.

The wild flowers are the enduring ones, the unfussy & unpretentious blooms that flourish where-ever they find themselves & merrily, freely share their seeds around in wild places or treasured gardens. They etch themselves into the stories & the memories of the gardens of childhood & mother's love; attracting beneficial insects & gracing the bouquets of both brides & of children alike.
 Chocolate Lace Flower is a niece of Bishops's Flower also known as Lady's Lace & Lace Flower or even Bullworth & White Fennel.

 Charming & frequently medicinal too, there is a resilience amongst the wildflowers that is unmatched in the cultivated garden world.

 They are the ones that have stood the test of time yet are no longer available in the garden centres & commercial places. Still they remain the flowers that cottage gardener's still love to grow.
It is the time for collecting the seeds of these treasures & what a mess they so generously create...paper bags & baskets filled with stems & pods can be found on almost every surface inside & out of our little house.

 So, fortunately I recently found an old painter or paperer's box at the Salys...

 & I rummaged around for the exquisite seed packet pictures that I had tucked away from an old calendar.

 I used up some old paint that Rob had poured for me another time & that was now so lumpy as to be unusable but once I added a little water I had a good mix to wash the well-worn wood with.

A coat to two or modge podge to seal the pictures & I am now a good deal more in order.

Being a wildflower means that you are always learning & observing & looking out for stuff & wondering. And then, of course, you are amazed at every new find...like this Gum Emperor moth that I spied on the tarseal in the supermarket carpark as we were one day wandering through.

 I gently scooped him up & popped him in my bag with my foraged elderberries

 to take him home for care..

 admiration

 & revival.

 Astonishing it is, that such a brown moth emerges from this colourful caterpillar body. We used to find them in the pepper trees when I was child, but I've not seen one since.

I am enchanted by the colours of the summer hydrangeas.

 Bashing their stems with my little hammer has meant that they have lasted a week in a vase, in heat, undaunted.

Summer can be a little overwhelming at it's zenith & there is always much to do, but we managed to plan a picnic a week or so ago & just went...to the sea

 with rock pools

 and ancient native bush,

 where it is cool & primal & fascinating things grow out of trees.

 Wildflowers wind themselves along fences.

 The earth is moist...

& gifts are to be found on the sacred pathways. This lichen: usnea, the Maori call angiangi. It can be made into a tincture that will help fight bacterial infection anywhere in the body.

It grows very slowly & is precious.

There is a peaceful brook..

that is a perfect spot for a celebration picnic. We frightened a family of fern birds out of the long grass at the riverside. They are very rare & precious too & not very good at flying.  

 There are still times in my days when I notice that I feel quite shut in, shut down or sad.
And then one morning I read these words (you may have to click on the picture to see all the words):

And so that's exactly what I did.

And quite soon we had made friends, several actually.

I intend to invite them for tea more often.

After this little session things became quite clear on the matter & I realised that I could choose to no longer be bullied by another's refusal to allow discussion or honesty.

I recalled how precious I am & the tea soothed away the gloom. 

I admire this wonderful creation often, just now. It was a sweet gift from my dear nephew. I have blue-tacked it to my my kitchen cupboards so that I can see it a lot.

That's me with golden hair & Rob is driving. Lucy in the sky with diamonds!

It is a tree of life, I just know it.

Just as Katie Daisy's tree...of life.

I feel filled with life & wonder when I see these pictures.

Must be because I am a wildflower.

who wanders, gathers, ponders & savours.... the wonders of life & nature.

Much love to you all, dear friends & readers....how amazed I am that you come to visit me here. I treasure, always, the lovely things that you reflect & share.....& your kindness.
 You are marvellous! Thank you x0x0x

Exploring Joy

Hello there!

I was wondering if you would like to tell me about what joy means to you?
I've done a bit of exploring and pondering myself over the last week or two and I have come to the conclusion that joy is really rather elusive. I have to say, I really do, that lots of descriptions & explanations are just plain odd and rather intangible.
But, I get the feeling that joy should be something wonderful, an energy, an emotion that draws us in with warm welcoming, open arms...

and says to our hearts "What a pure, simple delight it is to be alive".

  I find happiness to be a gentle friend..

and peace, a kind of restful feeling,

but joy..it sparkles and sings.

I think that joy maybe a soul-mate to wonder.

Nina and I decided that these pohutukawa "needles" may, in fact be, fairy matches.
What do you think?

I don't have much call for the complex & the grand, these days...

stress & struggle don't really serve any of us well.

Pretty & whimsical bring me a soul-nourishing happiness,

and my garden flowers, both pleasure

 & joy..

This Waterfall begonia revels in sunlight.

Joy can sometimes arrive by surprise.
Like on Christmas morning when I was startled to realise that there was a park bench sitting in my garden! Dear man had re-made it's seat (to fit the salvaged ends) & carefully hidden the bits from me as he went along..quite a feat!

To me a garden is a miracle of creation,

holding within it's fertile, loamy womb a self-perpetuating and everlasting gift of a myriad miracles; some evident to the open eye, some disguised in obscurity;

all enfolded in the gifts that are called seasons...

The colours, shapes, textures

and sheer abundance astonish me.

Our summer is now full-blown, with roasting hot days & just-a-sheet-covering, very warm nights.

So a few days ago, knowing Rob would be melting at work, I gathered some picnic things together

& a picnic tea

& off we went to the river, as soon as he got home.

Our favourite spot at Sacred Hill...

 So cool & tranquil & green.

Dear, sweet katie daisy.

I don't think that joy is found so much in the rushing, the busy whirl of a stress-filled life. 

But sometimes, it does pop in with happy serendipity, like the three delightful Lower Hutt visitors, that came back to find plums at the gate & ended up sampling elderberry tonic & kombucha, just half an hour ago. What a lovely joyful encounter!

So please do tell me more about joy, dear friends.

Thank you for your lovely visit.

Much love Catherine x0x0x