Soft Lovelies

These luscious soft lovelies bloom even when we aren't giving them nearly enough care. They grow on the water fountain side of our backyard; it is the prettiest side of the backyard, but currently the yard is needing some tender loving care.

I just haven't had the time to give it the attention that I know it needs, and Mr. Fun wouldn't begin to give it attention; I guess that stems from two reasons.

When Mr. Fun was a kid, he had terrible hay-fever. If he mowed the lawn or strolled through a garden, he'd sneeze for hours. Thankfully that's no longer a problem. The allergy doctor took care of that over a dozen years ago. The other reason is that his dad used to keep an immaculate yard. Everything was manicured and perfect. Mr. Fun's dad worshipped the yard and didn't really like people. My father-in-law referred to himself as "Grumpy Grandpa" and he was. Mr. Fun is just the opposite. He is 100% a people person and he could careless about perfecting the backyard.

So we have a gardener care for the front yard, which is beautiful, but Mr. Fun will not allow a gardener in the backyard because he doesn't want our dogs to ever get out of the yard. So he doesn't hire anyone to care for it. We do the "care" as our schedules allow. So these roses grow in spite of the attention or lack of that we give them. And I wonder . . .

. . . as I teach young college-age students, I wonder how many of them have grown without the attention or care they need. If every human was given the care and nurture, the kindness and grace, the encouragement that builds confidence, I wonder if the world would be a different place, a nicer place, a happier place.

Amazing where a rose can lead my thoughts--I especially like that these roses appear so soft. I am remind, though, they do have thorns.

Rosie (& Mr. Fun), aka Carol

P.S. This is back-blipped (05/10/12) because I am extremely overwhelmed with student papers to grade and haven't allowed the time to upload photos. The semester's end is insight. I don't want to rush time, but I can hardly wait.