Leaps of Faith

Contrary to conventional thinking, most landscapers know that a newly planted tree should never be staked. To develop health, strength and resistance the tree needs to be free to move with the wind. It's a leap of faith, proven by science. So with this brace. It allows plenty of movement even as it keeps my vertebrae protected. I'm removing it at night now and a little during the day to start to rebuild my muscles. I still can't bend over, even without the limitations of the brace, but I think that may have as much to do with stiffness and lack of use as weakness of the muscles and fractured vertebra. Today my niece Madeline is coming to help me start cutting back the gardens, cleaning up and putting things away for the season. This usually takes me days and days, especially after the dahlias have hardened off in the ground and need to be lifted, rinsed, tagged and stored in boxes full of wood shavings in my upstairs studio. The garlic will need to be planted and I hope to get her to help me with that, too. This summer I could only watch as first Jessica then Antoinette dug it for me. By October I might even be able to bend over enough to push the cloves into the raised beds myself. Like planting spring flowering bulbs in the fall, planting garlic is one of those leaps of faith that there will be a gratifying payoff ten months later. By then I will certainly be harvesting my own garlic again.