Bright Spots

Although gardening is not one of my strong suits, I started a little flower garden with high hopes a few years back. It would be my "butterfly" garden, and I would plant flowers that promised to draw said butterflies.

And so I spaded, dug, smoothed, laid walk stones, and studied numerous gardening books to select flowers fit for the space--which included some shady areas under three Ohio cedars at the back. These trees are over 75 years old--most probably planted in 1935 when our house was built. My  Mother's Day gift that year was a bench with a butterfly motif that nestled perfectly under the towering trio.

Fast forward past a few frustrating growing seasons. The coneflowers never made it. The lavender grew spindly and weak. Even the knockout roses--which were supposed to thrive with little maintenance--died. Only some of the herbs have endured(along with a yucca plant I've been told is nearly impossible to destroy). I'm sure several factors played into my problems, one being my own lack of experience. Others probably include not enough sunlight and poor soil, especially acidic from the cedars' needles.

But here's the good stuff. Every year there seems to be at least one bright spot in my garden. This year it is the tiger lily. Even the deer are leaving it alone, allowing me to enjoy its vibrant beauty. Its a great thing to look out at every morning.

Know something else that brightened my little corner of the world here recently? I found out that I was the winner of Lindsey's "Writer Goody Bag Giveaway" over at The Write Words. I was flabbergasted to learn my name came up in the random drawing. Thank you, Lindsey! If you haven't yet visited her site, hop on over. Her "Tip Tuesdays" are great--both for writing tips and links to other helpful places.

Bright spots. We all need them. What are some of yours?