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Flowers and Grapes was inspired as a blog a year ago when our daily lives went into lockdown at the start of the Covid19 pandemic. That first scary and unnerving week when all were asked to shelter in place (SIP), I took a picture of some zinnia seeds that sprouted on that fateful week. When I saw them I hoped that, by the time they bloomed in June, this nightmare would be over. My zinnias bloomed despite everything, and in them I knew that life would continue. It just was more difficult than I would have expected.
Like many, I lost love ones, a new career path, and many small things that I took for granted in daily life. Despite all this, these sprouts, my garden and the surrounding environment of the wine country nourished me. They demanded my attention and in them I found poetry — poetry that fed my creativity and nourished my soul, easing the loneliness of isolation and of being a first time empty nester.
My garden, natural setting, and my blog helped me also connect to my online gardening community. This fellowship along with the safe places provided by my garden and my extraordinary natural setting offered me inspiration during shelter in place. This context was the catalyst to inspire my blog, and now a year later, my first indie magazine Flowers & Grapes. As we all move forward together this spring when life is begging to open up for all, look for the poetry in your garden, natural environment, and in daily life. Celebrate it with more Flowers and Grapes!
