Wednesday, May 14, 2008

rrrRibbit


I let Max make a sugary syrup for the bee keeper. He hung it from the olive tree. We made many happy ants and then one happy spider! I wonder if they tasted sweet.
The backyard has a ficus and an olive tree, star jasmine, bower vine and a red honeysuckle kind of vine. There are also a lot of bromeliads and lantana, bougainvillea, and a prickly evergreen ground cover. There are some giant bird of paradise, huge sago palms, asparagus fern and a patch of lawn that struggles to look respectable... something we don't help when we pitch a ginormous tent for 4 day backyard adventures. I cannot fault the plants themselves, but I cannot say they are any I would have chosen. So many of them are sharp, prickly, ragged, imposing. The bower vine is pulling down the shared fence with the neighbors... not our problem, right? Something else is compromising the high stuccoed wall that divides the garden along the length of the property... I moved the sand box away from this. No need to tempt quake-fate.


It's been exactly 1 month since we brought home tadpoles from the east county creek. Remember, I assured the boys we were not breaking any laws or jeopardizing the fragile balance of Earth's ecosystems. We will return healthy, vigorous frogs. It will be like a conservation effort. A rescue, if you will. I am so in love with those little tadpoles, with the celery growing in the thrift shop aquarium and the tiny snails that have begun to appear. Today we found a dragonfly larvae.

The tadpoles dart and dash, and seem to enjoy exploring in the early evening. And they are growing. It was imperceptible at first, but very recently I have noticed feet. Tiny, tiny feet and the black dots of toes. They are forming just at the base of the tails. Did you know that their metamorphosis can take as long as 2 and 1/2 months? Imagine how much more smitten I will be by then, how eager I will be to hear the first pips of their Pacific Treefrog calls. Being the most prevalent frog in California i.e. Hollywood, the call of the Pacific Treefrog is the call of all television and movie frogs.

I have begun to hope, to ponder... do you suppose there is any chance we will find our home in the next 2 or 3 months? A place with room for a pond, or maybe one with a seasonal stream? Wouldn't the frogs, the happy, well loved frogs, frogs native to the entire region, wouldn't they be happy in a backyard pond? I think they could be. Yes, that would be very nice.


If not, if they become frogs while we are here in Garage Mahal, well, I know we will have to return them to their oak lined creek. Sigh. The children will be a bit disappointed... the mother will be totally bummed... I tell ya, I am really lovin' those frogs!

And yesterday's post? Well, what can I say? It's not always easy or honest to keep smiling, and so it helps relieve some of the pressure when I can let it all hang out. The comments and support are a great help. Thank you.

3 comments:

Andylynne said...

Ahhh Natalie,
Just caught up on you post of yesterday & today. What beautiful comments you received, so thoughtful and kind. Such good advice with offers of comfort. I believe the heart yearns for certain things. God, home, peace, things that are built in to us. A home of our own is definatly one of them. Even if it's a tent we would carry from place to place, it would be ours, to do with what we want. I don't believe your yearnings for a place of your own is ungrateful,shows discontent or being impatient. I KNOW you have a firm handle on gratitude. I don't believe you are impatient. Just yearning for the longings of your soul. Chin up, in due time, in his time it will come to pass. When you set your baby frogs free, their spirit will stay with you. It will echo in the frogs of your very own garden. Someday yes someday. Mean while it's ok to long and make plans to that end. Keep you smile and your spirit, you brighten more days than you know

gloria said...

¿TE HE DICHO QUE ADORO TUS FOTOS? EL ESTILO COUNTRY DE VIDA ME ATRAE MUCHO!!!
TU TERRAZA ES ACOGEDORA, ME IMAGINO SENTADA AHÍ TOMANDO EL FRESCO DE LA NOCHE, VIENDO LAS ESTRELLAS Y OYENDO EL CANTO DE LAS RANAS.
TE QUIERO NATHALIE, BESITOS ♥

Mary Smith said...

Your blog is such a feast of nature!! I love the birds, the baby, the tadpoles, the chicks! I love it all!
www.suchthings.ca (I'm not sure if my first comment worked)