I discovered this excerpt posted on the door of a university colleague. It was taken from The New York Sun in 1897, in response to a letter to the editor from an 8 year old girl named Virginia
"Is there a Santa Claus?"
"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, those qualities that abound and give your life its' highest beauty and joy.
How dreary the world would be if there was no Santa Claus! There would be no childlike faith, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence..."
Rather lofty words in response to the inquiry of an 8 year old child. However, it gave me pause as I asked myself just how I would respond to Virginia's question today. Any thoughts?
Dec 27, 2012
Dec 4, 2012
Blooms and memories
Fond memories are treasured possessions. Spending time walking through my yard takes me down "memory lane" Years ago when my husband and I bought our first home, which we named Locust Lane Farm, there was a flower garden in the shape of a horseshoe in the front yard. A gated driveway opened to passage over a cattle crossing and a driveway lined with stately maple and locust trees. A grove of black locust trees framed the back of the house. Locust trees are common in the Ohio landscape, and this sweet scent continues to evoke fond and lingering memories of the farm. Twenty seven years have past since we moved away, but these fond memories remain.
The view from the front porch extended a half mile to the north shore of buckeye lake, and included hundreds of acres of corn fields and pasture where Angus beef grazed directly behind the house. It was not uncommon to fall asleep to the lowing of cattle. We bought the property just before the blizzard of 1978. I remember snow drifts looming above the top of the car and traveling the last mile to the house to by snowmobile when the car could no longer progress in the deep snow.
The farm included not only extensive flower beds but peach, pear and apple trees, two grape arbors, and a vegetable garden that was 100' x 33'. Organic gardening became a regular subscription. Gardening was a delight yielding a constant supply of fresh vegetables and fruit and flowers from spring to fall. I fell in love with the spider wort plant and this flower the has traveled with me over the years and currently thrives in my garden. A curious little flower, it opens with purple blooms by day, and closes at night. It transplants easily and thrives in partial sun.
Blooms bring back memories. Today favorite scent is the lilac which evokes memories of the days I spent with my grandmother cutting fresh flowers and greens from her garden. She always had a bouquet of flowers on her kitchen table. I transplanted her lilac bush and over the years I have added several varieties to my garden including Miss Kim lilac, planed in memory of my father, and dwarf Korean lilacs outside the bedroom windows. Their scent sweeps through the house each spring during the bloom.
The view from the front porch extended a half mile to the north shore of buckeye lake, and included hundreds of acres of corn fields and pasture where Angus beef grazed directly behind the house. It was not uncommon to fall asleep to the lowing of cattle. We bought the property just before the blizzard of 1978. I remember snow drifts looming above the top of the car and traveling the last mile to the house to by snowmobile when the car could no longer progress in the deep snow.
The farm included not only extensive flower beds but peach, pear and apple trees, two grape arbors, and a vegetable garden that was 100' x 33'. Organic gardening became a regular subscription. Gardening was a delight yielding a constant supply of fresh vegetables and fruit and flowers from spring to fall. I fell in love with the spider wort plant and this flower the has traveled with me over the years and currently thrives in my garden. A curious little flower, it opens with purple blooms by day, and closes at night. It transplants easily and thrives in partial sun.
Blooms bring back memories. Today favorite scent is the lilac which evokes memories of the days I spent with my grandmother cutting fresh flowers and greens from her garden. She always had a bouquet of flowers on her kitchen table. I transplanted her lilac bush and over the years I have added several varieties to my garden including Miss Kim lilac, planed in memory of my father, and dwarf Korean lilacs outside the bedroom windows. Their scent sweeps through the house each spring during the bloom.
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