“Skirts of stars swirl through black space and waterfalls canter over stones, manes of runaway horses, and lone mushroom tilts in the shadows of soundless forest and God sees it all. This is His endless experience because this is who He is, beauty overflowing. . . . Joy is God’s life.”

~ from One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp (Canadian author, speaker, humanitarian)

Gladly shared by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& joyous Beauty-seeker)

“There is gardening, and there is being in a garden.

The gardener’s experience involves the deep satisfaction of working side by side with the Creator to develop a place of beauty. It is the satisfaction of making the world a better place. of participating in an activity that has been bettering the world for countless centuries.

But the other garden experience is just as valid. It is the experience of just being in a garden, enjoying a garden, gratefully gathering the gifts that the garden has to offer. This is the garden experience anyone can have . . . . “

~ Emilie Barnes, author of Time Began in a Garden

Gladly shared by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& grateful to be experiencing the garden James is building around me!)

Photos show breathtaking Rhododendron display being staged in a country garden, Manheim, PA.

“… the garden is so much more to me than a resource for cooking or decorating. To me, it is also a refuge, a place to go for rest and spiritual renewal. In the freeway of my life, I love to find an exit ramp that leads to a green retreat. There I can sit still or stroll slowly or dig in the soil and let the serenity of shrub and vine begin to grow inside me.”

~ Emilie Barnes (American author: Time Began in a Garden)

Shared by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& frequent garden refuge seeker)

This woodland garden breathes refreshment and rest at the end of an irregular stepping stone path that ambles through evergreen shrubs beneath towering shade trees, Elizabethtown, PA.

The goldenrod is yellow;
The corn is turning brown;
The trees in apple orchards
With fruit are bending down.

The gentian’s bluest fringes
Are curling in the sun;
In dusty pods the milkweed
Its hidden silk has spun.

The sedges flaunt their harvest
In every meadow nook;
And asters by the brook-side
Make asters in the brook.

By all these lovely tokens
September days are here,
With summer’s best of weather,
And autumn’s best of cheer.

~ Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885; American poet, writer, activist)

Shared by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& joyful ‘all-season’ enthusiast!)

“Standing in my garden, breathing in deep and sweet, I realize how often I seem to be holding my breath. So much of our urban air is noxious, thick. What a relief to find a place where the trees and plants have helped to cleanse the air, where taking a deep breath feels safe and pleasurable.”

~ Emilie Barnes (Gardener and author of Time Began in a Garden)

Gladly shared by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& garden breather)

**Wishing you rest from your labors, a place to breathe deeply, and joy in your garden this Labor Day! We’d love to help you find rest in your garden, not just on Labor Day but every day. Give us a call at 717-653-1271!