I’ve received a few nifty gifts recently. among them are heavy-duty limb loppers, a dual weed-trimmer and edger, and an electric hedge trimmer. Oh, and a new lawnmower. Now, you would think these are strange gifts for a woman “‘of a certain age” but I am delighted. I played with the edger yesterday and made the sidewalk look neat in about ten minutes, whereas before it took an hour crawling on my hands and knees with the lawn shears.
For the past few weeks I’ve been happily lopping down overgrown privet and dragging the trunks and branches to the curb to be picked up by the city “leaf and limb” truck. The hedges may be a little lop-sided, but they are no longer five feet high. I’ve made headway on the ivy runners (careful now to distinguish between the ground ivy and its poisonous cousin). Things are slowly coming under control.
I don’t know where this sudden enthusiasm for yard work came from. Maybe my genes are finally kicking in. Mom always loved working with her flowers and I have a photo of her digging in her rock garden. She is looking up at the photographer, probably my dad, and squinting into the sun. She always had flowers blooming somewhere — iris marched down the side of the driveway to the road and calla lilies bordered the yard. Her peonies were as big as dinner plates. She had a rose garden and I still recall the scent of the tiny, perfect tea roses on the evening air.
I did not inherit her talent with flowers. But, like her, I do enjoy working outside. I like getting up early, while it is still cool, and putting in an hour or two before sitting down at my desk and taking up my WIP from where I left off the day before.
I think giving the body a physical workout stimulates the mind as well. And it helps if you’ve been glued to your desk for hours to get up and do something that gets your blood moving again. It’s hard to keep a balance, but I have discovered that it is important both to your health and your creativity.
What do you do to keep your mind-body balance? A brisk walk? A fast game of tennis?
Leave a comment — you just might inspire someone.
Mimosa Mornings Writers 