Their Backyard

 

Tucked away in a quiet surburban street is a haven for flora, for fauna...for us.  On a block just like any other flanked by main roads, a nearby shopping centre, a local school, two souls have created a wild world. Vast trees reach their woody fingertips to the sunlight. Dense green undergrowth veils busy creatures. The air is cooler, cleaner there.

One steamy afternoon many years ago my parents marked out an area at the back of our yard and began digging up the grass. Rainforest plants were lovingly homed in the idle soil and buckets of water were heaved backwards and forwards to nourish them. Many, many times. Over the years this natural land has flourished and it is a place my children and I adore.

There are always cuttings paddling their toes in jars of water waiting patiently for whiskery roots to sprout from within. There are always animals (both the alive...and the not so lucky) to discover; to investigate. There is always tea.

It is an ever evolving micro-organism breathed to life by heart and hand.

It is a sanctuary.

Steph x