The larkspur and blue bells are dancing by the driveway.

Sunday at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

The Greenhouse Project with John

Mrs. Murphy, our neighbor, lives down the road by the creek. She is 94 and beloved by the neighborhood and many at Sedalia elementary. When her husband, Dr. Murphy, died, she suffered deeply and began volunteering at the school. That really helped her, as well as the many students she encouraged to read. She still hikes every day.

Her son built an incredible greenhouse with a lifting roof, which I'll take a picture of. Last year she was helping water the gardens and fell and was set back for quite awhile with her shin not healing properly. This year John, her son, asked us if the two girls would like to help with the greenhouse. He lives in Englewood so he can't be here every day to help with watering. We agreed to help so the girls will have a really good learning process and positive summer experience. We will walk down to the creek and help with the watering and also visit Lucy (Mrs. Murphy) to make sure she has company. Mrs. Murphy has always preferred children to adults.

Another neighbor, Maxine, has already planted beautiful flowers in the area outside of Lucy's back door. She and her husband, Adam, make sure Lucy is alright as well.

Last night we planted tomatoes, cucumber and squash plants after the sun went down to help protect their roots from our intense sun. Today we'll go down and start planting vegetable seeds. Ana also wants to plant some herbs that we use. We still found some Swiss chard and carrots from last year in the outside garden.

I love gardening and really look forward to the chance to have a greenhouse to use. I'm sure it will help the summer pass by pleasantly for the girls. They definitely enjoyed themselves last night.

More of the hike to see the wild plum blossoms.

The shot looks like young hatchlings, but they're flower buds

Cherokee Ranch Castle, Sedalia, Colorado,their website: www.cherokeeranch.org

Here's part of the information about Kripal from the Elliot Bay Book Club:


JEFFREY J. KRIPAL
Friday, May 25 at 7:30 p.m.

A noted scholar of religions from various traditions, Jeffrey Kripal is the J. Newton Rayzor Professor (and chair) of Religious Studies at Rice University. Author of such studies as Kali's Child, The Serpent's Gift and Roads of Excess, Palaces of Wisdom; he is here tonight with Esalen: America and the Religion of No Religion (University of Chicago), a unique, captivating account. "Esalen is a legendary sacred place, but legendary among the privileged few like Aldus Huxley, Henry Miller, and Joseph Campbell, for whom Esalen was a spiritual playground. Kripal tells the story of this beautiful retreat in California's Big Sur region—its history at once sexy, salacious, intellectual and political—with reverence and playfulness, alternating between the hushed tones of awe and the glee of partaking in Esalen's infamous sinful delights...Kripal is an engaging storyteller, Esalen a worthy subject (a kind of Us Weekly for the discerning intellectual), and it's as easy to jump from the introduction to chapter 14 as it is to continue in order." - Publishers Weekly.

The Esalen website is at: http://www.esalen.com

The wild plum is blossoming in the valley, it smells so good!!!
I think the other flower is a sand lily. I've been taking photos of local blooming plants, just to make a file with them and inventory. Last mother's day I did an inventory with Douglas County Open Space hikers and the Colorado Native Plant Society at the Cherokee Ranch Castle grounds. Each person submitting a plant list received two gift passes to visit the castle. I loved the experiences. So now I'm creating our local plant list.

I've been reading Esalen, about a philosophical group in Big Sur. Synchronicity is emphasized as a way of communicating divine messages. With the same type of synchronicity, I just read an article in Yoga Journal about the hot springs (hot springs yummm) and the next day the book was at the library with the new acquisitions. It's written by Jeffrey J. Kripal, the chair of the comparative religion dept. at Rice University. The theme is about America and the Religion of No Religion.

I've really enjoyed reading it. It's inspiring and I feel like I'm getting a philosophy class from my armchair (well I usually read in bed). I love how it's firing all sorts of neurons in my brain. Which is another premise mentioned in the book, the impact books have on readers and then the reader's effect on the world as a result. It makes a really good argument for reading.

Just ordered two cd's from the library with jazz saxaphonist, Benny Golson, one a jazz documentary soundtrack and one with him playing with Art Blakey. There was a great piece on him today on Morning Edition and now I want to hear more of his music.
Benny Golson: From Jazz to Hollywood and Back: www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9972619