A July Morning

I am writing a short entry this morning probably to avoid the heat of the garden. We have had a run of beautiful ,hot sunny days and it is wonderful but part of me longs for the crisp September days when I can return to my office and begin writing again.Several things are simmering in my writer's mind and I will let them take shape in my thoughts as I carry out the tedious task of weeding.Don't get me wrong I love to weed. I love the transformation of a row once I have removed all the weeds and hoe up the growing plants paying close attention to the miraculous process that takes a small seed to a green plant and an eventual vegetable on our table.Today I will tackle the parsnips. If you have ever seen a parsnip seed you will share my awe that a minute paper thin disc produces a root vegetable of such substance. It is one of the last seeds to germinate and I had to wait until the small leaves got big enough to stay rooted as I pull the weeds out around them. I know I should be out there doing it instead of in here writing about it. That is what writing is like sometimes . More time given to the thinking about it than the actual getting words on the screen.I had a good signing in Fredericton on Saturday and was pleased to meet a woman named Jodi-Ann . She had just finished a session of the Writers Workshop at UNB and was anxious to talk about the challenges of writing. I was happy to share my experience and offer some advice and encouragement. But it does all boil down to doing the work ,just like a successful garden does. I always say I want a Jim and Ida garden. Jim and Ida were my paternal grandparents and every summer they planted and meticulously maintained a huge garden. Perhaps my grandchildren will aspire to having a Burton and Sue garden. OK I'm going and if I can keep the vision of a long clean row of parsnips as my goal and I can get past the heat and the bugs I will have the reward of a lake swim and the joy of accomplishment.