Garden Party

I call my daughter, Michelle on the verge of tears as I glance out the window. "How on earth do you put up with your neighbor's cat " I ask as I survey the damage done to my newly planted azaelas. I whine as I tell her I can't count the many times that I have chased the neighbor's persian out of my yard. Now everything is messed up for the party. I glance at my watch and tell her that the guests will be arriving in a few hours for the annual garden party. She tries to reassure me as she hears the panic rise in my voice.

I rush outside and check the water garden on my way to the flower bed and I feel a sense of calm as I see a toad sitting on one of the many water lilies that are floating on top of water. The scents and the sounds of my water oasis, as I call it never fail to soothe me. From the croaking of the frogs to the sound of the waterfall that flows gently in the center of it, I always feel such a sense of peace when I near the area.

Michelle arrives as I finish replanting the last azaela, She looks around and says " I do not know how on earth you plan and design such beautiful works of art". She goes to her car and brings me four gorgeous pots of mums. I smile and thank her as she says that she picked them up on the way over in case we could not save the azaelas. She never ceases to amaze me with her thoughtfulness.

After placing the last of the mums arrangement, she volunteers to check the food table and seating arrangements while I go in and finish getting dressed. Hurriedly, I race inside and finish getting ready. I hear her enter the house as I finish slipping on my shoes.

Picking out some more music for the sound system, I watch as Michelle disappears through the door. Going to the window, I can not resist standing there, watching my little girl at her first stop as she changes out the cds in the stereo and begins to sing along she dances her way to the circle of roses. This part of the garden was her ideal although it was not difficult for her to convince me that it would be a great addition to the garden. I smile to myself as I see her bending to smell each of the different varieties before choosing a full bloom off my blue girl rose and sticking it in her hair.

She raises her voice as she belts out the words to a Taylor Swift song as she follows the brick path to a bed of tulips with many different colors. I glance at
the colors that she helped me to choose back in the planning stages of the garden,
from the fiery reds, to the soft yellow and even the vibrant orange that all lead to a different piece of statuary which was strategically placed to draw the eye of the viewer down the gentle slope before ending at the circular walk around the water garden.

I continue watching as June, my coworker arrives early to help, I see Michelle showing her around and telling her of the changes that I want to make before fall.

Taking a last glance in the huge mirror that hangs in the foyer, I go outside and join them where in just a few minutes the guests will begin to arrive.

Watching the guests eyes roam to the different areas as they exit their vehicles and begin to stroll around the garden fills me with a great sense of accomplishment. My eyes meets my daughters briefly as she continues talking to them about how the garden came to life.

JoAnn approaches me and is complimenting the array of colors when all a sudden I see everyone glancing off to the side and away from the garden. I turn and look in the direction to see what has captured their attention when I see two of my mallard ducks on the rooftop of the shed. Quickly raising up her iphone, JoAnn snaps a picture just as the male duck begins to fly away.

Mrs. Rhyman, head of the Garden Club finishes her speech, after giving the latest happenings within the club and announcing the winners of the blast of color contest as the hors d'œuvre trays are picked and the main course is served. As the guests are talking about their various garden projects that they are going to accomplish this year, I slip off inside the house and come out with a box that contains a beautiful live arrangement for each guest. I watch their eyes beam with surprise as Michelle hands each one their custom made arrangement.

I smell the dessert before it arrives at the table to be served. The scent of the apples and cinnamon from the award winning apple pie a la mode just seem to enhance the outdoor dining experience.

Twenty minutes after the last of the guests have departed, I am still sitting outside listening to the soft music and thinking of what a beautiful day it turned out to be as I begin to formulate a plan for the garden party next year.

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