23. Outdoor Living

One of the lovely by-products of this gardening adventure was spending more time outside—even when I wasn't working, weeding, or watering.

I’d wanted a hammock for a long time, and finally bit the bullet and found one on sale at Target. I assembled it myself (persevering when the written instructions stumped me). I did a lot of reading earlier in the summer before the temperatures soared.

My daughter and I found badminton rackets and birdies on sale at Walgreen’s, so that became a fun pastime too. That child and I can really crack each other up. We laughed really hard as we worked on improving the number of times we can keep the birdie volleying between us. One evening, she kept getting the birdies caught in the tree. We giggled as we threw the rackets in the air hoping to shake the birdies out. Next she hit the birdie and it landed in the gutter on the front of the house. I shook my head at the absurdity of it all and walked to my tool shed where I stored my ladder.

I walked through the gate entrance into the back yard and looked up and ahead. For the first time this summer, I looked at my back yard from a different perspective. I saw the wildness still needing to be tamed and for the first time, I did not see it as ugly or something that needed to be fixed.

What I saw, instead, was a space full of potential. And I saw myself different, too. I knew I had the enthusiasm, curiosity, and patience to transform it.