My Journey to the Lost Garden of Heligan, Cornwall, England There once was a place, a lost garden, that evokes Pete Seeger’s poignant song about the never-ending waste of human lives we call war: “Where have all the soldiers gone? Long time passing Where have all the soldiers gone? Long time ago Where have all […]
The Quetzals of Monteverde, Costa Rica Somewhere on this earth, a place calls out to you, with an emotional power that could only be real. That place for me was Monteverde, Costa Rica in 1997. I came to Monteverde with the hope of seeing a rare, beautiful bird, the Resplendent Quetzal; during mating season, male […]
Georgia O’Keeffe’s Flowers Some artists speak directly to your heart, not just through the subject matter, but also in color, form, light, and viewpoint, an entirety of invention that awakens a personal meaning and delight for a lifetime. Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986) is one of those artists for me. A print of her work called “The […]
My Journey to Charleston House, the home ground of the Bloomsbury Group I set off on a day trip aboard a sluggish train from London’s Victoria Station to the south of England. My destination: Charleston House, located in the village of Firle in East Sussex, not too far from Brighton. Charleston House hosted and housed […]
This post will be rather different. I felt compelled to write this piece and share it with you, given what is happening in our country. Your thoughts gratefully appreciated. I was born in 1946. WWII was over. Soldiers weren’t the only ones killed. No, this was a total war on civilians, and ten million Jews, […]
Making a garden is a form of art and escape from human woes, letting nature carry, subdue, and astound us with its boundless beauty. Each garden reflects local culture and its individual gardener, a human creation that always should be organic and protective of wildlife. Of all garden styles, the Japanese garden is designed to […]
My Journey to a Central American Rainforest Most of us can instantly remember the scariest plane ride they’ve had. Mine was the short flight from the airport in Belize City to a remote rainforest eco-lodge, an enclave of elevated cabins and dining hall built on an ancient Mayan site. Over 300 species of birds have […]
In my spring garden, I gaze in rapture, each day new life, new blossoms of white or pink, first peach, then apricot, pear, and lastly apple, each tree setting its own time to stir. It reminds me of Sakura, the ancient Japanese festival of cherry blossoms and the tradition of “hanami”, where people walk amongst […]
My Journey to An Ancient Rainforest I joined a small group hoping to find one of the most astounding, endangered flightless birds in the world — its sanctuary, a tropical rainforest called Daintree in Queensland, Australia. The air in a rainforest drips, its humidity nearly oppressive, like a greenhouse gone feral, every scrap of light […]
My Journey to Provence: Potagers and Lavender Fields My basement flat in London came with a modest outdoor space. For an unlimited quantity of Fosters and pizza, two Aussie brothers built me a rude potting up shed, made the garden access safe, and hauled off rubbish – a brew of bricks, rotten boards, and broken […]
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