Discovery Lake

Today was especially warm for our parts but that didn't stop Christina and me from taking the dogs to Discovery Lake for a nice stroll. The fragrance of pine trees and decomposing leaves woke up my senses. Ahhh... those are smells to live for.

At the very beginning of walk we crossed a wooden bridge that shaded by large sycamore trees... we stood there for awhile because there was a wonderful cool breeze coming up from the canyon. We took in the air and it was good. We continued on the trail looking at plants, trees and a few critters like squirrels, duck and butterflies. The butterflies were plentiful today. It must be the time of year for them. The most prolific today were the black & yellow ones - about 4 inches in size. They were everywhere. At one point, we sat on a bench and watched the butterflies and talked.

We talked about her cancer and treatment. She seems very accepting of whatever will be required of her. I pray her body is strong enough. I know her soul will live forever, but the human body can only take so much. I told her that I am prepared to do whatever I have to do to help her through this. She is always so appreciative. She is so tired and needs to rest. I admire her for getting out there today to walk. It was her idea. I wanted to do something, but she suggested the walk. We continued around the lake, sat once more in a shady area and then headed back to the car for the short drive home. I imagine she rested for most of the day after that. She needs it... after all she just had surgery to remove part of the tumor in her skull. What a brave woman.

She has a difficult road ahead with chemo and radiation... again, I hope and pray her body is strong enough.

I had a wonderful time today with my daughter and hope we can do it again soon.

Branch from the Alder tree

So I'm walking the dog around the neighborhood as I do everyday, several times a day. No matter how many times I walk past the alder trees on our street I am enamored with them. They are grand trees with silver bark and eye shaped markings randomly placed. The 2-inch leaves are variegated with a bright shimmering green. They stand like guards in the neighborhood -- I've often wonder how old they are. How did they get here? Were they planted, and if so, how long did it take for them to get that large? In this part of San Diego County, many native trees are uprooted when development is going in, and then non-natives are used for the landscape. Since these alders are California native trees, I happily wonder how they survived the developers plan. I've wondered, too, about how I could grow one. Wouldn't it be lovely to have one growing in our condominium's landscape? I'm notorious for getting cuttings and starting new plants. In fact, I spent the early part of the day carefully selecting offshoots from several of my own plants and planting them in little pots. These plants will go into the front yard, the common area of condominiums, in the fall during rainy season. I've already planted many native plants out there, slowly encroaching the non-native landscape. If I had an emoticon I would insert a dancing smiley face here. Okay, back to the alder... I'm walking Maia and while she's sniffing around for the perfect spot, I'm checking out the alders for viable pieces to borrow. I notice that each alder has little suckers shooting out from their huge trunk. I reach up to feel if they are pliable, which they are, and I firmly tug on one that's about 6 inches long with several leaves growing on it. It breaks off easily -- as I closely examine it -- I see it has several nodes that could potentially produce roots. Thrilled, we finish our walk and head home to temporarily place our newest addition to the landscape in a 6-inch pot.

(Updates to follow.)