Don’t spend money on green drinks, wrinkle creams, and hair dyes to take out the grey. It’s Springtime. Immerse yourself in nature and rejuvenate!
And of course, read a book. Here are a few titles guaranteed to make you flower and bloom.
Paradise Under Glass: The Education of An Indoor Gardener by Ruth Kassinger relates the author’s personal story of loss and how she found emotional healing in creating an indoor garden.
The Last Garden in England by Julia Kelly is the tale of three women in three different time periods and how the one garden they inhabit reveals secrets and changes lives.
The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year by Margaret Renkl, art by Billy Renkl takes the reader on a journey through the four seasons asking us to stop and notice the natural world around us that will cleanse, redeem, and take our breath away.
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben. Did you know that trees talk to each other?! This book brings us into the secret world of how trees feel, how they communicate, support each other, share nutrients, and even warn each other of dangers.
For history enthusiasts, nature lovers, and those who enjoy learning new things American Canopy: Trees, Forest, and the Making of a Nation by Eric Rutkow, relates how trees were essential to the early years of the United States and contributed a great deal to the nation’s rise as an empire and as a civilization.
For the youngsters in your life consider the following picture books. (Adults will like them too. I certainly do.)
The Extraordinary Gardener by Sam Broughton, a story about a young boy seeking color in a dreary world. He plants a seed on his balcony and when he least expects it, something extraordinary happens.
All Around Us by Xelena Gonzalez, illustrated by Adraina M. Garcia, is a warm and tender intergenerational story of a grandfather teaching his granddaughter about our connection with the earth, the parts that we can and cannot see, and the amazing circle of life.
The Weedy Garden by Margaret Renkl, illustrated by Billy Renkl is a lavish spread of art and imagination as the reader explores a backyard filled with hungry squirrels, busy bumblebees and sleepy fireflies, among other wonderful creatures waiting to be discovered.
A good title for Women’s History Month and for Black History Month is, Bring Me Some Apples and I’ll Make You a Pie: A Story About Edna Lewis by Robin Gourley. Edna was a descendant of slaves who grew up to become a famous chef. In September of 2014, she was honored on a United States Postage Stamp as part of the Celebrity Chefs series. The book also includes a few kid-friendly recipes.
The Comic Book Guide to Growing Food by Joseph Tychonievish, illustrated by Liz Anna Kozik, is a graphic novel guide for ages 4-7, (I found it very helpful too), of how to grow a successful vegetable garden.
So, spend more time outdoors in nature this year. It can help to ease stress and diminish the worry lines and wrinkles on your face and forehead, and turn your frown downside up into a smile.
Take a walk and put a spring in your step.
Smell a flower; it’s a new perfume.
Sit in the yard or in a park and enjoy a free musical bird song concert. Or take a restful nap. Forty winks can work wonders.
And try planting a few seeds of comfort and hope in someone else’s life.
You’ll feel as young as Spring!
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on April 22nd!
Books Reviewed by Veronica
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Anniversaries are festive occasions marking milestones and accomplishments. We recount experiences and memories; some sad, but hopefully mostly joyful. We celebrate the depth and richness of our shared lives.
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Every once in a while I daydream about what it would be like to meet some famous individual from the past. And if I did meet them, what would I say? Once we’d get past the introductions, nice to meet you; how’s the weather?, and other such polite niceties, what would I ask them or talk about? Maybe I’d freeze and my mind would go blank transforming me into a banal idiot.
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Hopes and wishes: the stuff that dreams are made of. Remember hoping for the dream boat prom date? Remember hoping for your dream job? How many times have you wished upon a star with all of your heart for something that you truly desired to come true? Or wished that you could slide down the rainbow tasting all of the colors along the ride, and then discover the wonderful world waiting for you at the end?
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In my March 22nd post, As Young As Spring, I mentioned several nature themed books. Today, I’d like to offer a review of one of those titles.
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Don’t spend money on green drinks, wrinkle creams, and hair dyes to take out the grey. It’s Springtime. Immerse yourself in nature and rejuvenate!
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