Now that the Olympic Games have focused the international spotlight on Rio de Janeiro, all manner of things Brazilian have reached the collective consciousness. As I—and the rest of the world—glued myself to the competitive cavalcade of sprinters, gymnasts and fencers, I thought of two things—getting myself into better shape and Roberto Burle Marx—1909-1994—the great … Read more
Many people over the years have quoted Oscar Wilde’s famous aphorism characterizing marriage as “the triumph of hope over experience.” My husband, David, and I defied Oscar Wilde and hope always won out. The same cannot be said of my experiences with fancy leaf begonias, which have been bitter. A few years ago, I wrote … Read more
You can tell a lot about a culture by the word its citizens use to describe the insect we call “butterfly”. German butterflies have such a weighty-sounding name–“schmetterling”—that it’s a wonder they manage to take to the air. The French and Italians allow their butterflies to float along as “papillon” or “farfalla”. Spaniards delight in … Read more
At this time of the year I am reminded of the old Protestant hymn, “Bringing in the Sheaves.” It celebrates the celestial and actual harvest with a refrain that goes: “Bringing in the sheaves, bringing in the sheaves, We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves;…” The “sheaves” I will bring in later today are … Read more
Every year in late December scores of visitors make their way to Stonehenge, the ancient earth and stone monument near Salisbury, England, to celebrate the winter solstice. The enormous stones are arranged on a solstitial axis, meaning that at the winter solstice, the sun sets directly over the stones at one end of the axis. … Read more
