Leisurely

This wispy clouds
were a reminder of the
glorious clouds
we use to be privy to
in Santa Fe almost every day.

One day this past weekend we took a leisurely drive up Sonoma Mountain. The  contrast between truly agriculture and the now in vineyards was remarkable. On one side of the road cattle and the other grapes:

A closer view of the each:

 

And then we enjoyed spectacular displays of my very favorite "spring flower":

"Eschscholzia californica, the California poppy, golden poppy,
California sunlight or cup of gold,
is a species of flowering plant in the family Papaveraceae,
native to the United States and Mexico."

I have planted some of these plants along the ditch between our property and the road in front of our house. Will I get a plethora of these stunning flowers is still in question. However, I trust over time the few planted will reseed to provide all who pass by with a lovely reminder that life is meant to celebrate!

Of course, during our drive we delighted in a 

Days to Celebrate

   
Pinus monophylla (Pinyon pine)

Days to celebrate this week begin with Saint Patrick's Day on Thursday, March 17 and then the full moon on March 18. We all know about the day for the Irish to celebrate. However the full moon, since it happens every month, is often often overlooked. Here is what Susan Levitt, astrologist, has to say:

"2022 Virgo Full Moon in Rabbit Lunar Month

March 18, 2022 is a full Moon in Virgo at 12:17 am PDT. Earth sign Virgo rules the 6th house of health, work, and service. For some, it's time to reassess work commitments and ways to be of service. For others this full moon, and as the moon wanes, is time for nurturing and attention to health.

Virgos tend to be analytical, and their actions are usually well thought out. Virgo is ruled by Mercury, as is Gemini. The one astrology sign opposite Virgo is the intuitive and sensitive Water sign Pisces. The Sun, Mercury, Jupiter, and Neptune are all in Pisces at this full Moon. Your rational mind tells you one thing while your heart tells you another!

With many planets in Pisces, follow your heart. It's easier to do in this Water Tiger year and Water Rabbit month. Rabbit correlates to the Western sign Pisces, adding to the Piscean ability to easily flow and adapt to change. . . .

Venus conjuncts Mars in Capricorn that's fortunate for love and romance. Venus and Mars square Uranus in Taurus. This can be disruptive, but also liberating. So be patient with loved ones -- or get things out in the open to reach a deeper understanding. Maintain Rabbit kindness and flexibility with Tiger's need for direct expression."

 Ribes sanguineum var. glutinosum 

 (Pink flower currant ‘Heart’s Delight’) 

Then on March 20 we have the Spring Equinox at 8:33 AM, Pacific time. Exactly halfway between midwinter and midsummer the Sun is directly 

above the Earth's equator with day and night of equal length.

as my eyes

search

the prairie

I feel the summer

in the spring.

               CHIPPEWA SONG

Equinox comes from the Latin aequi which means equal and nox which 

means night thus together translates as "equal night". Since the Sun is 

right above the equator both hemispheres receive the same amount of 

the Sun's rays making day and night approximately equal in both 

hemispheres.

The sun is entering Fire sign Aries marking the beginning of the solar year.

After the lock down brought on by COVID-19 virus truly this Spring Equinox

heralds awakening . . . a Spring awakening. "Pisces compassion and Equinox balance are for everyone, and are most transformational for Earth signs Virgo, Capricorn (Dwight), and Taurus (Cathie) and those born in Rat, Ox, Rabbit, and Snake years," says Susan Levitt as she closes her post.

Shasta is a Water Dragon.
Water soothes her . . .  after a bath she is so mellow and relaxed.

As we all enjoy these eventful March days surely we must also take delight in a hardy

Spring . . . Early

“We hear you, fellow-creatures. We know we are wrecking the world and we are afraid. What we have unleashed has such momentum now, we don’t know how to turn it around. Don’t leave us alone, we need your help. You need us too for your own survival. Are there powers there you can share with us?

I, lichen, work slowly, very slowly. Time is my friend. This is

what I give you: patience for the long haul and perseverance.

It is a dark time. As deep-diving trout I offer you my fearlessness of the dark. 

I am caterpillar. The leaves I eat taste bitter now. But dimly I

sense a great change coming. What I offer you, humans, is my

willingness to dissolve and transform. I do that without knowing what the end-result will be, so I share with you my courage too.”

                                                              JOANNA MACY                                                                                      

Blossoms on the Aristolochia californica (Dutchman's pipe vine) 

The Dutchman's pipe vine pictured above is my very favorite of all native vines. The pipe shaped blossoms are just so interesting! When the plant specific insect, the fungus gnat, comes to the flower, it gets temporarily trapped inside until it is thoroughly dusted with pollen. Slowly the flower relaxes and allows the gnat to escape and to spread the pollen. The vine itself is easy to grow, and grow it does each season. Once well established it can use pruning. The meager plant here does not seem to grow as fast as I remember they did at MuRefuge. I have planted an additional two very small plants purchased from California Flora Nursery in Fulton. I do so ever hope they will flourish here and grow into robust vines covered with flowers and fruit. I am looking forward to when the Pipevine Swallowtail females lay eggs on the leaves so I can watch the caterpillars gobble up the leaves.

Below are pictures I took of the entire event of egg, caterpillar, to butterfly while living at MuRefuge.

Eggs

Caterpillar

Chrysalis and caterpillar

Just emerged California Pipevine Swallowtail (butterfly)

I am looking forward to viewing the entire process here as well. It is such an extremely astonishing process to be hold!

 

"May it be beautiful before me.

May it be beautiful behind me.

May it be beautiful below me

May it be beautiful above me.

May it be beautiful all around me.

In beauty it is finished.

In beauty it is finished."

                           NAVAHO CHANT

It is beautiful all around us here in Cotati and in fact everywhere we drive in Sonoma County. It is Spring with a vast array of flowering bushes, trees and perennials.

The plum trees with both white and pink flowers
are in bloom everywhere. This one, and the one below
 are in the park just across the street from our
Cotati home. Shasta and I walk this
way every morning on our 2 mile walk.

These are on the hill a ways South of our house

where Shasta often walks with her "Dads" in the morning.

The camellias blooming this Spring
in an array of pinks, reds and white
are really spectacular.
I remember it was one of my mother's favorite
flowers she became acquainted with
while living in Southern California
in her early married life.

Oxalis stricta (common yellow woodsorrel)
is an ubiquitous weed found in almost
everyone's lawn or garden here in Sonoma County.

This picture was recently
taken at my acupuncturist's 
in the West County.

Manzanita bushes are in full bloom all around
the county. Some have pale pink flowers
while others have pure white ones.
This is one of my very favorite native bushes!

Each Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings I pass
this stunning display of rosemary cascading down
a wall in the front yard of a home which
is atop a gentle slope.

And nearby is this beautiful Flowering quince.

The deciduous Magnolia trees are flowering.
This one is white but I pass on Shasta's and my
morning walk others that are pink.

And just down the street a crabapple 

is covered with glorious flowers.

Spring is one of my favorite seasons; the other one is Fall. I am so delighted that Spring has already arrived in spite of the minimal rainfall so far in 2022. No doubt we are in for a record breaking dry year here in Sonoma County but Shasta has not a care in the world. Below she is nestled in our arugula bed after one of her Auntie T's recent visits.

“May our bodies, our minds, our spirts, learn a new rhythm paced

by the rhythmic pulse of the whole created order.

May spring come to us, be in us, and recreate life in us.

CHINOOK PSALTER

Spring arrived early during one of the top ten hottest, driest months of February on record here in the Bay Area. May we whole heartedly celebrate Spring and all her glory with a hearty, frequent

 

Shaping up

Hummingbird sage (Salvia spathacea)
blooming in our backyard. 
I love the stunning flowers
The leaves have a wonderful fragrance
which I love as well.

PageRefuge is shaping up to BE a place of abundance for all creatures that visit, and of course for we two humans who have created such on a very small plot of land. In the midst of honoring our work and enjoying what has been created, I am filled with sorrow witnessing what is unfolding half a world away in Ukraine. Witnessing the suffering and violence is the thrust of Roshi Joan Halifax in her writing. You may read her words by clicking on the Ukraine link above. My question to each and everyone of us is if that democracy can be invaded by the command of the Russian autocrat why not ours here in the United States?

Back to PageRefuge where I would like to highlight Dwight's carpentry:

A mini greenhouse now sits on
the West side of our house.
Here I can start seeds
with a regulated temperature
created by the heat mattress
on the bottom.

Then this past Friday we hired a stellar man who is incredibly strong as well as a hard worker. If anyone is looking for someone to complete a task for them feel free to give me a call and I can give you his name and contact information.

In our backyard where the pear tree and apple tree stood when we purchased PageRefuge now sit two 4 feet by 8 feet raised beds. Initially Dwight was considering building them out of redwood but found the redwood available would not stand up long. Concrete blocks last forever; well maybe not forever but way beyond our life times. Hardware cloth was laid on bare dirt to keep out the gophers. Concrete blocks were positioned on the hardware cloth around the perimeter two deep. Our hard worker took his truck to Grab n Grow and picked up 3 cubic yards of dirt. The organic soil seemed the best kind of "dirt" to fill the raised beds since it will provide fertilizer for 60 days.

Western wild ginger (Asarum caudatum) with flower
transplanted from Auntie T's garden in Point Reyes Station.

At MuRefuge there was not adequate shade thus I have not grown Wild ginger before. I was ecstatic when I noticed the flower in my very first attempt to grow this plant.

“The greatest sorrow of life is witnessing. Experiencing our own sufferings is not as difficult as watching others held in fate’s mighty grip. Bearing our own problems is easier because we are always aware that we can exercise other options - - up to the final one. However, it hurts the most when we can do nothing for others. The greatest sorrow is to see those we love suffer helplessly.“                                                                           DENG MING-DAO

While we witness the atrocities being foisted upon the Ukrainian peoples who are valiantly fighting, to dissipate our greatest sorrow may we