The Apostrophe Blog
My tree is growing. Started small, smaller than I would have liked. Seemed a few sticks until Phil the Expert Gardener gave it a creative and healthy pruning a year or so ago. And now, here we are, still here after four or five years, and the tree, well, it is finally delivering: Leaves that are hearts. Blossoms that nestle in the crook of branches. Branches that the assorted birds and pollinators in our native habitat frequent on their way to the water feature that graces this circular patio in our grass-less front yard.
Here is what Wikipedia has to say about it: “Cercis is a genus of about ten species in the sub-family Cercidoideae of the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains small deciduous trees or larger shrubs commonly known as redbuds in these United States. They are characterized by simple, rounded to heart-shaped leaves and and pinkish-red flowers borne in the early spring on bare leafless shoots, on both branches and trunk aka cauliflory. The genus contains ten species, native to warm temperate regions of North America, southern Europe, western and central Asia, and China.”
Bare, leafless shoots—a metaphor for our current moment? And oh how this preoccupation, this hobby, this gardening pastime is so, so preferable to the abominations and travesties that daily, currently surround us…
Interests: Reading, writing, not arithmetic. The art and craft of poetry. Photography. Vegetable and flower gardening especially heirloom bulbs and dahlias. Movies in real theatres. Theatre on real stages. Art in real galleries. Crossword puzzles and, of course, Wordle. Singer-songwriters like Aimee Mann and Patti Griffin. All kinds of music especially 1930s jazz. Venice, Italy! The Dude abides.
- Red. Bud. - April 27, 2026
- Acceptance News: My Golden Shovel, “Verdict” - April 24, 2026
- The March of March - March 29, 2026
