Rhoda Williams

A Gardener's Journal Rhoda Williams

Forty-five-year-old Flora New is surrounded by the sights, sounds, and smells of her youth as she moves back to her childhood home in Asheville, North Carolina, from Seattle, Washington. She deeply misses her mother, who died two years ago, but after restoring the aged Victorian home, Flora reads her mother's old gardening journals and brings her beautiful garden back to life. Through her mother's journals, Flora learns about the values she and her flowers need to grow. Along with nurturing herself, she nurtures them. By coincidence or design, each time Flora plants a new flower, a new friend enters her life. It's as if the flowers come alive and exhibit their own unique personalities. The seeds cultivate a diversity of friendships. Gloria "Morning Glory" Moran, Lavenia "Lavender" Labelle, Rosa "Rose" Wasserman, DeCynthia "Bleeding Heart" Hart, Lily "Lily of the Valley" White, and Holly "Hollyhock" Alexander become an integral part of Flora's life. This short story and gardening journal demonstrates that gardening is one of life's metaphors. Seeds are planted, they bloom, they are nurtured, and they die, only to start again, creating a beautiful work of art and friendships to be enjoyed.