Prompt #
39 - My Safe Place
Time out
for me is making an effort to go out for coffee or walks to be with
people. The rest of the time, I am alone, reflecting, thinking,
making decisions, creating on my own. My house is my safe place. I
spend most of my time in my upstairs office, at my PC computer. Then,
in the TV room, playing Scrabble or solitaire on my laptop, or
writing the Book of Me. Or else I'm in my reading chair by the big
window. Or in the kitchen, between stove and fridge and water taps.
If it weren't for feeding the birds on the deck, I can go for days
without stepping outside.
If it
weren't for garbage day, and preparing the stuff to set out, I can go
for a week without really being in the yard. Which is a shame because
I love the yard almost as much as the house. The four small garden
areas—along the south wall, in front of the deck, the curve of
hostas beside the big rock, and the little yew triangle between the
parking space and the house. The laburnum is in full bloom right now
and the golden chains are hanging over the railing. The third rhodo
has just come out as well - vibrant burgundy. The rest of the yard is
my wildwood. The dogwoods and saskatoons are over. The honeysuckle
are starting to flower. The wild rose will be a bit later. The rest
is box shrub and fir. The yard smells so beautiful, especially right
now in the rain, and you can really hear the creek because the
freshet is here.
When I
was a kid living at home, being the only girl,I had the luxury of my
own room, although I usually did my homework on the kitchen table
where the light was better. My favourite place on the farm was the
pasture. There were flowers, three-headed avens, crocus, tiger
lilies, aster, patches of box and other low shrub with cattle and
rabbit trails through it, surrounded by mostly poplar groves. My
mother said I had my first spanking in the pasture when I was a few
months old. I had escaped the house and the yard and had trundled
along the path to the pasture where she found me happily wandering
among the cows and calves, with my bum in the air and my nose in a
flower. I don't remember this, but I like the story. I guess this
pasture has remained my happy place.
I am the same way about getting outside. I used to garden before we moved here and the yard is too shady. I like being outdoors, the yard, although surrounded by hedges, feels so public to me after 35 years in the country.
ReplyDeleteYes, Kristin. I'm like that too. When the leaves fall, I feel so exposed. So much of our early years still influence us today. These prompts make me more aware of that.
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