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| Rosa 'Princess Alexandra of Kent' 1 June 2025 |
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| 1 June 2025 |
Perhaps by the end of the 80s my Rosemary and I opened our garden to garden clubs and to friends. By the 90s Americans in buses would come to see our garden which eventually became a feature in the magazine Better Homes and Gardens.
Opening our garden was thus a yearly tradition in which our daughters and granddaughters would be present.
After Rosemary died on December 9, 2020 I have kept opening my garden every year to the Vancouver Rose Society. Before her death, we would work for weeks before getting it ready and buying little perennials and annuals to fill holes.
I opened the garden this weekend. My youngest daughter baked all kinds of sweets and I made my signature English-style cucumber sandwiches and iced tea. But something was different that left me with melancholy. Somehow while my eldest daughter Alexandra helped me out for a couple of hours on Saturday, Hilary, my youngest daughter had commitments (she is selling her house) and could not be present. And my two granddaughters, now living firmly in this century probably think I am just an old man. I missed seeing them.
My male cat Niño, who is very social, was in attendance and I had quite a few people come. Once people left I was left with an empty feeling. I could not compare notes with Rosemary. I settled on the beds and my two cats got on top of me. They were her cats, too. I was filled with a melancholy that nothing will change. Tomorrow my eldest daughter is coming in the morning. I am looking forward to that. Meanwhile I will be eating cucumber sandwiches for some time.
To illustrate this sad blog I chose to cut the English Rose, Rosa ‘Princess Alexandra of Kent’. It measures 5 inches and I did not want to cut while people were coming to the garden. It was one of Rosemary’s favourites as the name coincided with Alexandra.
I have no idea how I can possibly get rid of my emptiness except to understand that oblivion will soon beckon. Meanwhile I have Niño and Niña, who cuddle with me every night. They give me a reason for a continued existence.
