Greetings from the Garden

I cheated.

This year I got a head start on the garden.

One of our favorite books is Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert (Harcourt).

We went to the nursery and bought the rainbow (A good friend once told me to bloom where planted, gardening is always the beginning of a new home).

These are the benefits of living in Niger, the flowers are aways in bloom.  The rainbow here is the familiar; lantana and birds of paradise for the butterflies to attract friends to the garden, citronella to keep pests away and the same lettuces we love.

It's a good life for a Myalgia Mommie and I hope to write more as we settle into a new routine. I have an amazing garden and the children are flourishing. We relocated to Africa during the Holiday season to try something completely different.

Living with Chronic Pain I find gardening and meditating to be most efficacious for a myriad of symptoms, at least for me.

As research continues to demonstrate, there is a powerful mind/body connection. I enjoy gardening because we can witness the fruits of our labors in a relatively short period of time. It also gives a sense of achievement or accomplishment. (Except the orchids I killed, but that's another blog...) Sometimes, I need that short term validation. The salad we picked last night was wonderfully satisfying.

Parenting is such a long game. As we talk to friends who are becoming grandparents, I realize this isn't a phase of life: this is life.

I had to come to Africa to find a place where I could raise my three darlings in the environment that I think will be best for their growth. Also, it sounded like a fun adventure. Here I have found people raising happy children with little or no resources. I've also found some orphans to give my extra energy to, so things are good. It's strange being in such an empty place during a time of great migration.  I will try to learn different lessons and write again soon.

ALJ
Niamey, Niger