As I felt my toes in the grass I noticed it tickled. They were covered in dew and leaving droplets all over my bare feet. Curious, I walked a bit further. I saw remnants of my dog being here that I hadn’t cleaned up yet. I quickly sidestepped those piles. I looked out over my backyard, remembering the fun times we had building a giant snowman and snow fort, catching snowballs with Koda. Snow dusting the tall evergreens and fenceposts.

We hadn’t seen it in the spring when we signed the lease but when spring started blooming we saw Sherri’s hard work with the perennials we didn’t know the names of. Typical of a Dutch house, there were of course, beautiful tulips. We had irises and a bleeding heart. Apparently we weedwhacked mint, oops…I guess we have more horticulture knowledge to gather – don’t tell my greenhouse guru dad!

The spring and now moving into summer is so lush with leaves that the squirrels can run through, along with the groundhog, voles and of course the new cat the boys have named buttercup. It’s a lot harder to stay unattached to animals when they have names and are exceptionally friendly. But it just takes one attack of my dog to say, “Yup, she’s getting booted out of town in a box!” I’m an animal lover, but protective momma first.

I feel my feet grounded in the grass, freshly cut and well groomed. But I allow myself to day dream
The campfires around the new fire pit
The pool fun with the boys and Koda on a hot day
The porch swing watching the crazy traffic go by
The cute little patio set to sit around with friends, writing, chatting, sharing laughs
So much potential in this little yard
The oasis of my dreams

But I also dream of sitting on the porch overlooking a small lake on my retreat farm one day. Acres of peace and serenity to find creative healing and sharing that with all who come looking for themselves, and the animals
Of course the animals.
Sheep and goats and chickens. Alpacas and horses, dogs and all the wild birds sharing their unconditional love and healing
An oasis of hope for those who may feel lost, or just need a little reset.
A dream come true that fills my heart with so much love and hope at a time when I need it more than ever