[evarekataVame]

My garden, at the moment, is full of daffodils in bloom, forsythia with its bright yellow flowers that light up the dullest day, a Japanese quince bush with its pink flowers, and brightly coloured crocuses all over the place.

The sky is blue, there are some scattered clouds, a warm gentle breeze. The almond trees across the road are full of blossoms, the aroma of which wafts across to me as I work so hard to have everything sparkling clean for Easter and our Lord.

I just want to share some of the most beautiful hymns about the glory of God's creation with you. I listen to these over and over again and my spirit soars. Whoever invented the MP3 player deserves a medal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RXME...eature=related

Jim Reeves : The flowers, the sunset, the TreesEach time I touch a rose petal and breathe the sweet fragrance it brings
I know there's a God up in heaven, no human could create these things
The dogwood, the oak and the willow so gracefully wave in the breeze
The dogwood, I'll always remember my Lord died upon one of these

The sunset in its golden splendor, such colors no artist can do

I know when I look on its beauty, each page in the Bible is true

No picture or painting can capture the beauty of any of these

The handwork of God is revealed in the flowers, the sunset, the trees

I come to the garden alone A special favourite that I often sing while gardening....................................


I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.

Refrain

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice,
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing.

Refrain

I’d stay in the garden with Him
Though the night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling.

Refrain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UilrmC1M1s4


And, of course, The Akathist of Thanksgiving. I have recorded it myself on my MP3.

It is the Holy Spirit who makes us find joy in each flower, the exquisite scent, the delicate colour, the beauty of the Most High in the tiniest of things. Glory and honour to the Spirit, the Giver of Life, who covers the fields with their carpet of flowers, crowns the harvest with gold, and gives to us the joy of gazing at it with our eyes. O be joyful and sing to Him: Alleluia!

Ikos 3

How glorious art Thou in the springtime, when every creature awakes to new life and joyfully sings Thy praises with a thousand tongues. Thou art the Source of Life, the Destroyer of Death. By the light of the moon, nightingales sing, and the valleys and hills lie like wedding garments, white as snow. All the earth is Thy promised bride awaiting her spotless husband. If the grass of the field is like this, how gloriously shall we be transfigured in the Second Coming after the Resurrection! How splendid our bodies, how spotless our souls!

Glory to Thee, bringing from the depth of the earth an endless variety of colours, tastes and scents
Glory to Thee for the warmth and tenderness of the world of nature
Glory to Thee for the numberless creatures around us
Glory to Thee for the depths of Thy wisdom, the whole world a living sign of it
Glory to Thee; on my knees, I kiss the traces of Thine unseen hand
Glory to Thee, enlightening us with the clearness of eternal life
Glory to Thee for the hope of the unutterable, imperishable beauty of immortality
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age


see Thine heavens resplendent with stars. How glorious art Thou radiant with light! Eternity watches me by the rays of the distant stars. I am small, insignificant, but the Lord is at my side. Thy right arm guides me wherever I go.

Glory to Thee, ceaselessly watching over me
Glory to Thee for the encounters Thou dost arrange for me
Glory to Thee for the love of parents, for the faithfulness of friends
Glory to Thee for the humbleness of the animals which serve me
Glory to Thee for the unforgettable moments of life
Glory to Thee for the heart's innocent joy
Glory to Thee for the joy of living
Moving and being able to return Thy love
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age

Full text here : http://www.saintjonah.org/services/thanksgiving.htm


"It is the Holy Spirit who makes us find joy in each flower, the exquisite scent, the delicate colour, the beauty of the Most High in the tiniest of things."

[choollaBard]

My grampa used to sing that Jim Reeves song, he liked to sing How Great Thou Art also. He was a tough truck driver his whole life. I remember how surprised I was the day I was playing with my new cassette tape recorder as a kid when he said, “Bring that here Ricky and I’ll sing you a song.” I never heard him sing before or knew that he did sing. He had a low powerful voice that sounded just like Jim Reeves or Bing Crosby, depending on the song. I found out later that he learned to sing driving across the country in his truck. That YouTube song is touching to me this morning Effie.

Here’s a picture of what’s going on in my backyard right now. This is a Contorted Hazelnut (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’) that I have planted as a specimen tree. It is flowering right now. This picture was taken on a gray cloudy day, but the tree still lights up my backyard and contributes bright colors and hues on a gray day.




Contorted Hazelnut.jpg



I think there are many emotions that can be evoked in a garden. I think there are many lessons we can learn from nature as well as appreciating its beauty.

This particular tree is very attractive in the spring when its foliage begins to appear. The leaves come out in a tender bright shade and in a somewhat sparse fashion. Then, there is a transition to its summer appearance, with its lush and textured dark green leaves completely covering its ornate framework. Next, the amber-brown fall color is very artful and romantic to view, especially when some of the leaves start to fall exposing some branches, which twist and turn in every direction. For some, the great attraction to this plant is the ‘winter interest’ that it provides to a garden. While some ornamental grasses and shrubs with brightly colored stems can provide excellent winter interest, when a Contorted Hazelnut is present in a residential landscape in the wintertime, all eyes will be drawn to it first. When all the leaves have fallen completely off , the twisted and turned branches are clearly visible even from a window in the house. Somewhat like a painting that draws your eye and keeps your attention, the Contorted Hazelnut becomes an object to gaze upon when it and other plants have gone dormant.

But, from the point-of-view of other folks, the best is yet to come. What happens next is in late winter, as in the photo above, this plant decorates itself with ornaments. These ornaments are yellowish-bright lime green flower clusters called ‘catkins.’ When the Hazelnut hangs its catkins during this time it is a great thing to see. Late winter is a unique time that I think sometimes goes unnoticed and unappreciated by even some of us gardeners. What I mean is many people rightly think of our gardening year in terms of four seasons. We think of spring, summer, fall, and winter— right? But, I wonder if it has occurred to many that there is a kind of in-between season for gardening (and appreciating our gardens) as it relates to the growing season of a plant. There is a period of time where the plants are neither dormant, as in winter, nor shutting down as in fall, but they are not fully active either as in spring or summer. This is a time when we are in a kind of limbo, not knowing really what is going to happen and on what timetable. A season when the grass is green, but it is not growing and does not need cut.

This “fifth season,” if you will, is a time of year when the Contorted Hazelnut can really enhance and add to one’s garden and one’s life. Somewhat like a sunset on a Haystack Rock on the ocean in the Pacific Northwest, as the colors move from orange to purplish to muted darkness, when the Contorted Hazelnut is in this flowering stage it can really hold our attention and even be a source of great reflection. During this fifth season, some folks have shared with me that it can be a time when they experience sadness and grief, or even regret. However, others have shared with me that during this period of time, just as they know the sunset is ephemeral and the flowers on the Hazelnut are fleeting, this fifth season of life can be the most fulfilling and rewarding time, and a source of great beauty. I think this special time of the year can be appreciated in a fuller way by the latter group. Because they know when the sun does disappear, it will not be gone long—there will be a reuniting soon. And, this latter group also knows that whenever the flowers do finally fall from the Hazelnut, this does not signal ‘the end’ of anything, but just the opposite . . . this is a gesture for the new bright green leaves to appear, and a first movement of ‘the beginning’ of the new gardening year.

[WenPyclenoWex]

How beautiful, Rick. I have never seen a hazelnut tree (as far as I know) but you have inspired me to try and find one. The Japanese have their 3 day cherry blossom time and it is somewhat similar to what you have expressed in your message. Everything changes, nothing remains the same - we have to accept this and appreciate the beauty of the present moment.

" Heraclitus put this very well; he said that you can't step into the same river twice, because it is constantly changing. "

The following words from your post are so beautiful : " However, others have shared with me that during this period of time, just as they know the sunset is ephemeral and the flowers on the Hazelnut are fleeting, this fifth season of life can be the most fulfilling and rewarding time, and a source of great beauty. I think this special time of the year can be appreciated in a fuller way by the latter group. Because they know when the sun does disappear, it will not be gone long—there will be a reuniting soon. And, this latter group also knows that whenever the flowers do finally fall from the Hazelnut, this does not signal ‘the end’ of anything, but just the opposite . . . this is a gesture for the new bright green leaves to appear, and a first movement of ‘the beginning’ of the new gardening year. "

The hortensia which is now flowering is the same. When its bright yellow flowers - which really light up the whole area around it - wither and fall, its "new, bright green leaves" appear. Last year we forgot to prune our two hortensia bushes right after their flowering period, with the result that they are somewhat "shaggy" this year.

My husband loves our garden and he has become more "spiritual" because of it. He often mentions his belief that God has provided us with everything we need to live a full and healthy life.

When people disappoint me, my garden raises my spirit. It restores my soul. Psalm 23 : He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul.


This year we have planted a few berry bushes. Blueberries, blackberries (in a large container) and red currants. My son has been promised a hippophaes bush and also a stevia plant.

My morning tea is the following : A glass of hot water with a teabag of Kozani saffron (crocus). The no. 10 variety includes honey, apple, orange, rosehip, blackberry leaves (very good for diabetics) and lemon peel. These teabags are produced in a large village a couple of miles south of Kozani. I add the juice of one lemon, a pinch of ginger and a pinch of turmeric.

Try it. You will find it very refreshing first thing in the morning. The Kozani saffron products are now found all over the world but, if you can't find them, you could use a ordinary saffron teabag and add the lemon juice, the ginger powder and the turmeric.

I really enjoyed reading your post.

Euterpe

[BrianGoldsmith]

After your very cold and snowy winter, I am glad that spring has sprung in beautiful Kozani!

May God bless you, dearest Effie! :-)

[anatmob]

Today, both of you, Effie and Rick, have brought great joy to my soul, lifting my spirits with the beautiful words, photos, songs posted. I especially appreciate the "fifth Season" , Rick. As Nature imbued by God's Spirit seems to hold it's Breath, so that each of us can can take a moment to stop and see the "miracle" happening right before our eyes. In this way the soul in communion with the most hidden presence of God whether it be in Nature, in His Word, or in the simple daily life that is ours, can in communion be healed, satisfied, sanctified and deified by His very Presence among us! Thank you! Merci! Eucharistia! Gracias! All is Gift and Grace! The "Garden" seems to be the Place where all life unfolds . . .

[Serereids]

Very nice Effie and Marie. There is more to say, but right now I only have time to say that after looking at your tea recipe Effie I am viewing my crocuses differently. I have read that the best saffron comes from a few very hard to get cultivars, from a variety that blooms in the fall instead of the spring. But if the genus and species are the same, it seems like one could give it a go with those and see what happens. I checked once before about this and I can get the same genus and species easily (cannot remember what these are), but not the specific cultivars that are recommended for the best saffron.

[UitEz0Qo]

Very nice Effie and Marie. There is more to say, but right now I only have time to say that after looking at your tea recipe Effie I am viewing my crocuses differently. I have read that the best saffron comes from a few very hard to get cultivars, from a variety that blooms in the fall instead of the spring. But if the genus and species are the same, it seems like one could give it a go with those and see what happens. I checked once before about this and I can get the same genus and species easily (cannot remember what these are), but not the specific cultivars that are recommended for the best saffron.

Rick, be careful. There are apparently two types of crocuses. The ones that we can consume have two or three stems - I can't remember which is which. The other variety is poisonous. I have crocuses in my garden but as I can't remember what I was told about them, I would never dare to consume them - the only part of the crocus that is usable are the stems and that is why saffron is so expensive. I buy the saffron that is grown by the farmers in the village Krokos. This saffron is of a very good quality - one of the best - and it is exported to many countries, including the USA I believe.

[feroiodpiop]

I tried to find the saffron that you mentioned Effie, and I couldn't find a source in the USA in my first try. I found sources in other countries (Ireland the closet), but nothing here. I'll keep looking.

Okay, now you will make me look it up. Crocus sativus is the genus and species of the one that is used for saffron. I saw 3 or 4 cultivars (like aquila, as in crocus sativus aquila') which are supposed to be the best ones to use. But, avoiding the 'field crocuses' that are posiness, what I am reading says any Crocus sativus can be used. And, these are the ones with the 3 red stigmas that we harvest and dry.

[Alupleintilla]

Which means that the two stem ones in our gardens are the dangerous ones.

My neighbour across the road told me about my crocuses. She is now over 70 and has helped me so much probably because she is from a village near Grevena and has great experience in everything to do with plants etc. I have learnt so much from her and trust her knowledge. These women know so much but once they are gone I believe that a lot of their knowledge will go with them.

http://www.mightyfoods.com/archives/...i_saffron.html

The Organic Red Saffron, produced by the renowned Kozani Saffron Compulsory Cooperative, in Northern Greece, is a certified organic product that is distinguished for its excellent quality which places it in the Coupe Class, the top quality of Saffron in the world. Saffron, made from the dried stigmas of the crocus flower, is the world's most expensive spice.

The saffron produced by the cooperative has been awarded Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status.

Greek red saffron or 'Krokos Kozanis', is considered to be one of the best saffrons in the world. The stigmata is extracted by hand from the freshly harvested flowers and then laid out to dry. Once dried they are irregular, deep orange threads. It takes about 50,000 stigmata of Crocus Sativus Linneaus to make 100g of red saffron.

http://www.greekembassy.org/embassy/...&article=16875

poisonous autumn crocus :

http://museum.gov.ns.ca/poison/?section=species&id=77

Mine are flowering now! I have to go down and pick one and see how many stigma it has. Just got back. The mauve flowers have wilted and closed but I carefully opened a couple. There are three stigma! Which means I can dry them and use them in either pilafs or as a tea. Of course, considering that you need 50.000 stigmata to make 100 grs of red saffron, I might as well forget it. I remember a heart specialist on TV saying that he faithfully drinks a cup of saffron tea each morning - nothing better for the heart....................

[DioraMoostebeers]

Where to buy saffron in the US :

So where do I buy my saffron?
"From the same purveyor who was sampling that German saffron bread at a dessert show in San Francisco 13 years ago! I have looked for alternatives, believe me. As an investigative reporter, writer, cook and baker I want to find and use the best saffron available anywhere. Period. This has nothing to do with loyalty to a single vendor. Vanilla, Saffron Imports in San Francisco has been in the saffron import business for more than 20 years but there are other U.S.-based saffron vendors who have been selling saffron for much longer. The question is who has been selling excellent saffron the longest? Through 1994, the saffron I used was Spanish. In 1995 I was introduced to saffron from Macedonia in Northern Greece. I was so amazed by this Greek saffron that shortly after I started working with it I made a trip to the Macedonian saffron harvest and the saffron cooperative headquartered in the town of Krocus (the Greek name for saffron). This Greek saffron is the best saffron I have ever worked with and has a coloring strength of 256, verified by laboratory reports, which is 45 points higher than the minimum international standard for all saffron.

As long as you are willing to buy your saffron by the ounce, the Golden Gate Brand Greek saffron I use is available to you. I have not seen this Greek saffron for sale elsewhere in the U.S. but that doesn't mean someone else is selling it. Judging by poor quality Greek saffron I bought in Athens, it is important to buy Greek saffron from the cooperative in Krokus which maintains strict standards for all saffron farmers. If the farmers do not meet those requirements, the cooperative does not buy their saffron.

In the U.S. saffron is definitely still a fringe spice. Many supermarkets refuse to carry it because their spice buyers claim it is a high theft item. At the prices the supermarkets generally charge for saffron, this is not surprising. How often have you attempted to buy saffron in a supermarket only to be told to go see the manager because the saffron is locked in his/her office or in a safe? In investigating saffron's general availability, I have had this experience numerous times. This does not help encourage Americans to become familiar with saffron. "

The above is from http://www.thecookinginn.com/saffrona.html

A funny story : Years ago when I was working for a French firm, farmers from the village Krokos would come to our office and sell their saffron to the French who use it extensively, especially in their fish saffron soup. The French would watch the farmers weigh it carefully on their little scales and then pay a large sum for it. Afterwards the French would weigh it themselves and start swearing because the Greeks had given them less than they should have. That did not stop the French from buying the saffron again and again. I used to wonder how expensive saffron was in their own country.

[endulundaSauh]

Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; Sing praises to our God on the lyre, Who covers the heavens with clouds, Who provides rain for the earth, Who makes grass to grow on the mountains. He gives to the beast its food, And to the young ravens which cry. . . Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion! For He has strengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your sons within you. He makes peace in your borders; He satisfies you with the finest of the wheat. He sends forth His command to the earth; His word runs very swiftly. He gives snow like wool; He scatters the frost like ashes. He casts forth His ice as fragments; Who can stand before His cold? He sends forth His word and melts them; He causes His wind to blow and the waters to flow (Psalm 147:7-9, 12-18).

[Vipvlad]

Where to buy saffron in the US :

Walmart. And the little jars it comes packaged in are usually empty as people have stolen it right out of the container and put it back on the shelf. I think a jar of somehting like .05 ounces is $10. Ridiculous price. Can't say I have ever used it so I can't comment on its flavor.

[aparneioninny]

We had to learn this poem by heart in school. I believe that it is very familiar to everyone, something that does not detract from its beauty

I WANDERED lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed--and gazed--but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

[Discus]

Spring has disappeared and we are back in a winter wonderland. The pine branches are so heavily laden with snow that they are drooping close to the ground. All the blossoms that were encouraged to bloom because of the warm weather are paying for their optimism. There will be very few almonds this year. Luckily the fruit trees were not fooled and didn't blossom. Everything is from God, as my husband reminded me, so I should stop complaining. Complaining about the weather is one of the most futile things we can do. We can be thankful for the 2-3 weeks of bright flowers and lovely warm weather we enjoyed. It will soon be spring again and Holy Week is mystical and special. It is the highlight of our religion. I have spoken in the past of the joy of Easter here in my town. How my heart lifts after the Christos Anesti celebration as all the points of light from the candles - these streams of light - emerge from the church to the homes of the faithful, how wonderful it all is. The world government enthusiasts are doing their best to ensure that we become godless, just one of the ruses they employ in their attempts to crush us, but we will NOT be crushed. Our faith is firmly lodged in our hearts and, once again, this miracle of faith will strengthen us. Doxa si o Theos - Glory to God.

[ViktorialHDY]

You are so right. Last summer when we had the worst drought in history here in Houston (and most of Texas) everyone it seemed complained about "mother nature." This made me understand that this euphemism for God and His control over everything was just the way we complain about God or rather blaspheme Him.

Do the Greeks speak of "mother nature" as a separate and real force apart from God? Here they do, especially on things like the weather segment on television, I think this is in part because they either don't believe in God or they are too ashamed to admit that they do.

[Soulofpostar]

Mother Nature = μητερα φυση (mitera physi).

People here don't refer to nature as something separate from God. God created everything on this earth. We don't know how, but everything from the tiniest cell to the largest creature is so perfectly made that we know a higher intelligence was involved. Just imagine what knowledge man will have acquired in another 5.000, 10,000 or even 10 million years. Just because we don't understand doesn't mean that there isn't a perfectly logical explanation for everything. Man has discovered so much in the last 200 years. Unfortunately this has given him an exaggerated idea of himself and he is starting to interefere in processes he knows little about.

What can we do? One way is to ensure that we are surrounded by beauty. A garden is beautiful. It is not the only beautiful thing we should strive for but it is important. It's difficult not to remember God when working in your garden.

""The fertility of the earth is its perfect finishing," writes St. Basil of Caesarea, "growth of all kinds of plants, the up springing of tall trees, both productive and sterile, flowers' sweet scents and fair colours, and all that which … came forth from the earth to beautify her, their universal Mother" (Hexaemeron, homily 2).

" As long as man is good to the land, the land will remain productive and life-giving. Life-giving for whom? For all who partake of its bounty. An act of goodness toward the land, then, is an act of goodness toward every man, woman, and child who live by the land’s nourishment. Want to love your neighbor? Preserve the forests that clean the air he breathes; protect the land that grows the food she eats; purify the sources that provide the water she drinks. “God is emptied,” wrote St Maximus the Confessor, “and descends without change to the last extremities of nature.” Love for God is love for nature; love for nature is love for neighbor."
http://www.antiochian.org/node/19202

A garden that you cultivate and enjoy is not a substitute for our journey with Christ. It is just one of the many paths open to us.

Cultivating the Garden of the Heart

http://orthodoxinfo.com/phronema/cul...e-therapy.aspx

[Escamsrasiush]

Well said.

However it is somewhat scary to think not so much about the rapid growth of information in the last two centuries and to project this into the future but the scale of misuse of this information and what that might bring to human kind.

I would much rather have the images of the garden, the trees and the butterfly as reminders of God's creative glory and His sharing with me these reminders. (BTW, yesterday my wife harvested the first two tomatoes of the season!)

Your point about the state of our environment being a reflection of the state of our relationship to the Creator God is one that on the physical level I quite often lose, for some reason I see this degradation much more in terms of our economies, social interaction and political systems. Thanks for redirecting my focus.

[qilmuz6v]

(BTW, yesterday my wife harvested the first two tomatoes of the season!)

Are you serious?/!

We are still about a month away from being able to plant. I didn't realize there was such a huge difference between our growing seasons.

How many days ago did you plant you tomatoes?

[TeLMgNva]

I can beat that Kyrill. I picked my first handful of blackberries in the back yard on Palm Sunday and 2 more handfuls from out by the mailbox just a couple of hours ago.

Rick: Are you kidding? This is Texas. remember? It might be snowing in the Panhandle and people dying of heat exhaustion in Brownsville. I think we are in region 8 of the seed growing packet's chart.

[maxtp]

I just checked the info for zone 8 and it looks like you guys have about a 10 month growing season. That sounds pretty good! That would be so cool to have fresh produce from the garden available 10+ months of the year.


***What a minute, I just double checked and the 10+ month growing season is for zone 9. It says you guys have a last freeze date of March 15 in zone 8. So, if you are in zone 8 that means Kryill has planted a tomato plant and harvested tomatoes in less than 30 days.