(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . The Catnip In The Bricks. [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-04-25 Welcome to the Street Prophets Coffee Hour. Remember that famous line in Jurassic Park, the one spoken by Dr Ian Malcolm? (Jeff Goldblum, yum) "Life finds a way". It's true. And there's nothing like living in a semi-arid climate with poor soil and extreme temperatures year round to convince you of that. I've been spending as much time as possible outside on my patio. It's a nice, east facing spot. Shady in the afternoon and pleasant on all but the very hottest days; surrounded by mesquite trees and a mix of native and introduced plants. It's my favorite spot to sit and watch the moon rise. Years ago my parents put in a couple of raised garden beds and a brick surface for patio furniture to be placed. Like the house itself that part of the yard had been sadly neglected; I got to work on it before we moved here. One of the last things I did before leaving the house in Cottonwood was to take cuttings and dig up small offshoots from the herb garden I'd put in years before. Sage, oregano, thyme, mint, chives, parsley, and catnip all followed me here to Cornville. The tiny catnip plant I brought here has flourished in the years since. I like growing my own herbs for cooking and other things. Every year starting in late summer I cut bundles for drying; most of the time I still have a bit left by the time the plants come back in the spring. This elk skull I painted also serves as an herb drying rack. Oddly enough my herbs are about the only things I grow that the local wildlife doesn't seem to enjoy eating. Although the hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies love the blooms. And I do let everything bloom. Once the flowers are spent tiny goldfinches feast on the seeds. But they don't get all of them. By the second year "volunteers" started showing up. Those uneaten seeds have a way of finding new spots in which to sprout, and I let them. If they have the strength and the will to grow somewhere I didn't choose, I won't interfere. Sometimes the new location is surprising. For a couple of weeks now I've watched this little volunteer growing. You can probably tell by the pictures that a tidy, manicured garden isn't a priority for me. Truth is, the more wild, green, and jungle-y it is the better I like it. But that little catnip plant is something else again. It has sprouted in a crevice between the bricks, and looks a little bigger every time I see it. I've moved the chair to give it more room; I'll put the chair in a new location if necessary. I want that little plant to thrive. (Catnip by the way is a lovely plant. Beautiful and easy to grow. It's famous for the effect it has on cats, but has almost the opposite effect on humans. Eaten raw or steeped in a tea, catnip has a mildly relaxing effect and can can help settle an upset stomach.) That tiny seed managed to escape being a finch's breakfast. It spent all winter under snow and frost, without any attention or encouragement from me. From a tiny space between some bricks, under a chair, unaided and unnoticed until very recently, it's pushing it's way into the world and taking up a little more space every day. If it had had a choice, it probably would not have chosen that inhospitable and rather vulnerable spot. It's growing there anyway. I find that both touching and inspiring. In my worldview and beliefs, Life itself, the Life Force, is a manifestation of the Divine. As in, no separation between Creator and Creation. A face of the Goddess Herself, green and spreading outward. If She has chosen to manifest Herself between some bricks on my patio, right next to where I sit to admire the moon, I should take notice. And noticing, think about not just the beauty and the miracle in front of me, but to take it's lesson to heart. We don't always find ourselves in comfortable or pleasant situations. Sometimes it's a precarious place to be in. Often we have little or no choice in the matter. But Life still finds a way. A lesson I will probably be pondering for some time. Thank you for reading. This is an open thread, all topics are welcome. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/25/2165012/-The-Catnip-In-The-Bricks Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/