I was raised a farmer's daughter until I was seven years old and that is when my dad got a factory job. I started my life barefoot, walking through family gardens, snapping beans and pea pods when I was four years old, watching dad "shake" cream into butter in a gallon jar. I swam in ponds, creeks and low rivers. Used an out house and shared a galvanized tub of bath water with one sister and an uncle, younger than me. Wood stove for heat and straight well water. This is a lifestyle that I never lost.
I never had air conditioning until my oldest children were seven and three years old. No lights on during the day, windows cracked open, tin foil or newspaper over them, a fan backwards to draw in one window and plenty of cool baths during the day. This life teaches you that nature is there. Whole, pure and needs our care. In the summer, it teaches you to live WITH nature, keep your utility bills lows by making sure you turn off everything electrical that is not needed on.
My mom's parents had a rustic, two-room cabin from the time I was five until I was 14 years old. There I was still always barefoot (my mom's mom was a part Cherokee woman and rarely wore shoes, I think I got it from her). Learned the cycle of life of bull frogs in the creek out back, year round. Learned to watch out for the little bones, as we ate every fish we caught and appreciate the bounty of the catch, very much. Learned controlled burning of the undergrowth and that dead leaves created new life out of the ashes. With no TV, some board games and being outside, all we truly had was nature and loved it!
In 1986 my world changed with moving to the city. I never gave up hoping that I would have a yard big enough to have nature all around me again and twenty years ago we bought this house. I have transplanted two small trees into the yard to help have shade over our old house. They are SO big now. My lovely plants and flowers range from native to exotics and are never without bees, butterflies and small birds. From time to time there will be a garter snake as it travels between yards and that is really something for our grand-kids to see.
We started using the energy saving light bulbs about four years ago. I felt we needed to do more of our part on the inside, since our area has such high electrical bills. Our youngest has just graduated from high school and is still at home. She is very responsible with helping in keeping lights and other electrical items shut off when not in use.
We make use of rain drainage for extra watering and keeping the ponds filled. Instead of chemicals on the yard, I have learned to use simple sidewalk chalk to draw lines around the foundation to keep those tiny ants out of the house. We finally got our recycle bins and take them to the recycling center. We can now recycle more than just soda cans. Yesterday I emailed, locally, about both sides of our family adopting a street or section of inner highway to clean up in loving memory of our loved ones lost to cancer. We use several homemade products for cleaning inside the house. Essential oils for room fresheners.
With me, it's a must that I am able to be outside. My backyard can do, when I don't get to go a block north to the wooded area there. I have worked hard to create that space back there that is nature, comfort and peaceful. I can be barefoot there. I can work with my hands in the soil, knowing that what we are doing here and started when we moved in has made an impact, no matter how small on our efforts to work with nature in not only our neighborhood, but our community as well. My own love of being with nature I have passed onto my children and now they to their children.
I don't garden here, but I do go to the local Farmer's Market now, that is open two days a week, in season. I have neighbors with gardens that share with us, plus one that cans and also shares.
We do recycle the store containers that can be reused. The other store containers now go into the recycle bins.
Our neighborhood is fairly *green* and we will continue to do our part to keep it growing in that direction. In doing this, there will not be any chemicals used on the lawn that could wash into the waterways. I don’t use anything but vinegar to kill nuisance weeds. After I first wrote this, I started to garden. It’s small, but I just love it. To keep pests away, I have used filament/line to hand cds from my tomato cages, as the squirrels were eating more than we did. I have learned to use/set out Marigolds to help against bugs in the garden and around the yard. I encourage the area birds by having 3 feeders in the yard. And, from when I had small birds, I have 2 wooden nesting boxes that I have turned into bird houses and mounted them on the back fence. I don’t throw away starts off of the trees in my yard, I offer them to people for free. Rose of Sharon, Maple, Mimosa, Oak (my lady oak has now gifted me with several saplings) and there are 2 more I’m not familiar with, yet. I believe what I’m doing here is showing and helping, as I have watched 2 neighbors add bird baths, butterfly plants/flowers and more “outside” friendly things to their homes. I’ve noticed the neighbor across the street is using vinegar for his sidewalk weeds as I can sure smell it when he does. I’m thankful and grateful to have this opportunity to see our lovely old neighborhood coming around, especially on our street. I am truly blessed to have begun this path and I eagerly await to see where it takes me. (1,048)
My mom's parents had a rustic, two-room cabin from the time I was five until I was 14 years old. There I was still always barefoot (my mom's mom was a part Cherokee woman and rarely wore shoes, I think I got it from her). Learned the cycle of life of bull frogs in the creek out back, year round. Learned to watch out for the little bones, as we ate every fish we caught and appreciate the bounty of the catch, very much. Learned controlled burning of the undergrowth and that dead leaves created new life out of the ashes. With no TV, some board games and being outside, all we truly had was nature and loved it!
In 1986 my world changed with moving to the city. I never gave up hoping that I would have a yard big enough to have nature all around me again and twenty years ago we bought this house. I have transplanted two small trees into the yard to help have shade over our old house. They are SO big now. My lovely plants and flowers range from native to exotics and are never without bees, butterflies and small birds. From time to time there will be a garter snake as it travels between yards and that is really something for our grand-kids to see.
We started using the energy saving light bulbs about four years ago. I felt we needed to do more of our part on the inside, since our area has such high electrical bills. Our youngest has just graduated from high school and is still at home. She is very responsible with helping in keeping lights and other electrical items shut off when not in use.
We make use of rain drainage for extra watering and keeping the ponds filled. Instead of chemicals on the yard, I have learned to use simple sidewalk chalk to draw lines around the foundation to keep those tiny ants out of the house. We finally got our recycle bins and take them to the recycling center. We can now recycle more than just soda cans. Yesterday I emailed, locally, about both sides of our family adopting a street or section of inner highway to clean up in loving memory of our loved ones lost to cancer. We use several homemade products for cleaning inside the house. Essential oils for room fresheners.
With me, it's a must that I am able to be outside. My backyard can do, when I don't get to go a block north to the wooded area there. I have worked hard to create that space back there that is nature, comfort and peaceful. I can be barefoot there. I can work with my hands in the soil, knowing that what we are doing here and started when we moved in has made an impact, no matter how small on our efforts to work with nature in not only our neighborhood, but our community as well. My own love of being with nature I have passed onto my children and now they to their children.
I don't garden here, but I do go to the local Farmer's Market now, that is open two days a week, in season. I have neighbors with gardens that share with us, plus one that cans and also shares.
We do recycle the store containers that can be reused. The other store containers now go into the recycle bins.
Our neighborhood is fairly *green* and we will continue to do our part to keep it growing in that direction. In doing this, there will not be any chemicals used on the lawn that could wash into the waterways. I don’t use anything but vinegar to kill nuisance weeds. After I first wrote this, I started to garden. It’s small, but I just love it. To keep pests away, I have used filament/line to hand cds from my tomato cages, as the squirrels were eating more than we did. I have learned to use/set out Marigolds to help against bugs in the garden and around the yard. I encourage the area birds by having 3 feeders in the yard. And, from when I had small birds, I have 2 wooden nesting boxes that I have turned into bird houses and mounted them on the back fence. I don’t throw away starts off of the trees in my yard, I offer them to people for free. Rose of Sharon, Maple, Mimosa, Oak (my lady oak has now gifted me with several saplings) and there are 2 more I’m not familiar with, yet. I believe what I’m doing here is showing and helping, as I have watched 2 neighbors add bird baths, butterfly plants/flowers and more “outside” friendly things to their homes. I’ve noticed the neighbor across the street is using vinegar for his sidewalk weeds as I can sure smell it when he does. I’m thankful and grateful to have this opportunity to see our lovely old neighborhood coming around, especially on our street. I am truly blessed to have begun this path and I eagerly await to see where it takes me. (1,048)
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