an amaryllis story

Back in mid-December, I bought a potted amaryllis kit from Stephen at my beloved Brattle Square Florist. I always admire the red blooms in the dead of winter, but had never grown one before. And then the pre-holiday madness hit, and the bulb sat in its box on my kitchen shelf for several weeks.

I removed it right after the New Year to find that it had sprouted – but, with no sunlight, the stems and bud were pure white. I panicked, feeling like Charlie Brown with his poor little Christmas tree. Had I killed it with my neglect? Was there any hope for growth or blooms?

I potted it anyway, and set it in a sunny spot near my little African violet, which is loving the winter sunshine and blooming away. And, with some water and a few days of sunlight, a miracle happened.

Look! Bright green healthy stems, gorgeous red blooms, and more on the way.

I am grateful to whatever magic (or scientific wizardry) made the plant sprout on its own, and amazed at the simple alchemy of soil, sunlight and water. And I’m so glad I decided to try potting it instead of giving up.

I’ve got a few paperwhite bulbs in tall vases, and will be watching for them to bloom next.

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saving my life: mid-November edition.

We’ve had nearly a week of grey skies and misty rain – yesterday was the first sunny day since last Saturday. I finally felt I could breathe again.

In between meetings, construction noise at work and cooking dinner, here’s what is saving my life now:

• Fresh pomegranates – seeding them is somehow satisfying, and the seeds themselves are delicious, like little tart jewels.
• My colleagues’ sly humor and good cheer, which came in especially handy during a three-hour meeting (yes, really) this week.
• The olive green textured leggings my mom passed on to me this fall, which (it turns out) go with nearly everything.
• Replacing a few worn-out wardrobe staples: ankle boots, slippers, running shoes.
• Shalane Flanagan’s superhero muffins – filling, delicious and healthy.

• My red geraniums, which I’ve brought indoors for the winter. So far, they are thriving.
• Starting (another) reread of the Harry Potter series.
• Several recent phone and in-person chats with dear friends.
• It’s soup season and I’ve been making my classics: black bean, chicken enchilada, tomato, jalapeño. Yum.
• Related: leftovers for lunch and dinner, some days.
• My new bright teal running headband.

• Related: lunchtime running on the Esplanade, when I can swing it. (Those skies.)
• Sunshine, whenever I can get it.
• Grocery delivery and online shopping – without a car, it’s a huge help.
• Strong black tea, several times a day.
• Maggie Smith’s gentle, wise, beautifully crafted tweets, which always end with “Keep moving.”

What’s saving your life on these dark, chilly evenings?

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saving my life: suddenly fall edition.

Here we are in October – the days and nights are starting to draw in, the maples are turning brilliantly red, the occasional cold rains have arrived, and fall events are in full swing.

I’m feeling more settled in my new place, and between commutes and running and cooking dinner, I finally had a bit of time to note what’s saving my life now:

• Sunflowers, at home and at work. I love their cheerful faces, and they remind me of that Mary Oliver poem.
• My new Rebel Alliance logo earrings. I am not a hardcore Star Wars geek, but I am a diehard Leia Organa fan. These earrings are sterling silver, subtle and badass, and I love them.
• Birchbox, which I tried thanks to a recent Cup of Jo post. Getting a few colorful boxes of samples in the mail has felt indulgent and also nourishing, somehow.
• My brand-new travel mug from my friends at Obvious State, who make the best literary swag.

• Trader Joe’s essentials: crumbly English cheddar, bags of tiny mandarins, Greek yogurt by the tub, peanut-butter-filled pretzels, and smiles from the staff.
• Texts from my girlfriends (always) and getting to hug a few of them (local and far-flung) in person.
• A few recent visiting artist events at Berklee, where I work – I get to listen to fascinating, intelligent, talented, kind folks like rapper Dessa and film composer Pinar Toprak sharing their wisdom with our students.
• A trip to my beloved florist the other day, for the first time in weeks. I caught up with my people and bought some scarlet tulips tipped with gold.

• Jen Lee’s Morning, Sunshine videos – doses of kindness and wisdom twice a week. Go check out the series on YouTube.
• The music of the Highwomen.
• Sunshine on my shoulders, especially when I take my laptop to the plant-filled conference room at work.
• Chai from the BPL cafe – best in Back Bay.
• Poetry, including a whole slew of new-to-me gems via poet Maggie Smith.
• The quilt my friend Carol made for me, so good for snuggling under on these chilly nights.
• Ginger peach tea and Earl Grey in the mornings, spiced black tea in the afternoons, peppermint tea or pumpkin spice rooibos at night.
• Rereading The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets, a longtime fave.

What’s saving your life these days?

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saving my life: post-move, deep summer edition.

It’s August, somehow, and I’m in full summer mode: iced chai, tan lines and freckles (and lots of sunscreen), stovetop cooking (when I cook anything), and all the berries I can eat. Here’s what’s saving my life, in these hot, hazy, still-transition-filled days:

• Late-summer flowers: black-eyed Susans, deep blue and pink hydrangeas, the first dahlias, day lilies in every shade of yellow and red and orange.
• Running into Phoenix, my little golden doodle buddy, and his person on my morning walks.
• My friend Jen Lee’s brand-new, free YouTube video series: Morning, Sunshine. Go check it out if you’d like a dose of connection and compassion.

• The views out my new apartment windows: Boston Harbor on one side, the local park (usually with a friendly dog or two) on the other side.
• My Rothys, which I’m wearing all. the. time. 
• The silver triangle Zil earrings I bought at the SoWa market last month.
• Texts from friends checking in on my move and transition.

• Iced chai – from Darwin’s when I can make it to the Square, and from the BPL or Tatte when I can’t.
• Ginger peach MEM tea in my favorite purple travel mug, every morning.
• Susannah Conway’s August Break photo project.
• My favorite LUSH face mask – it’s Cookie-Monster blue and smells like citrus.

• Impulse grabs from the BPL’s new books shelf, and piles of ARCs for Shelf Awareness.
• Morning Bluebike rides across the river.
• Rosé and raspberry-lemon sorbet after a long evening of unpacking.
• Eating my breakfast granola out of a real bowl.
• Trader Joe’s veggie beet wraps, berries and cherries, yogurt, granola, hint-of-lime tortilla chips and sourdough bread. (Not all at once.)

• Bryan Nash Gill’s “Woodcut” journals – I bought a four-pack at Trident a while ago. And good pens.
• Colleagues who make me laugh.
• Listening to some of the artists I heard/discovered at the Newport Folk Festival – about which more soon.
• Having enough brain space (finally!) to make this list.

What’s saving your life these days, my friends?

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August Break 2019: pink

All the pink summer flowers, spotted variously in Back Bay, Harvard Square, and my new neighborhood of East Boston.

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August Break 2019: morning light

It’s August – somehow – and that means Susannah Conway’s annual August Break photo project. I’m sharing my photos on Instagram (I’m @katiengibson), but I’ll be posting them here too, as I can.

Today’s prompt is “morning light.” Above is the view out my new kitchen window (I know). Here’s what it looks like inside:

Still in progress, but it’s coming together. Clearly red is still a theme.

And here, because I’ve always got an eye out for the #FlowerReport, are some black-eyed Susans I spotted on my way to the train.

Happy August, friends. Hope it treats you right.

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Lilac time

This April was an unusually rainy one – even my favorite weather guy commented on it, more than once. The grey skies didn’t help my spirits much, but I have to say, the lilacs have loved it. (That adage about April showers and May flowers rings especially true in years like these.)

A friend sent me pictures of fragrant white lilacs before I saw any in flower. But by early May, the towering lilac across the street from my house was in full, perfect bloom. I stood under it after a Saturday run, sniffing ecstatically, and thinking about the line from that (insanely long) Alfred Noyes poem: “Come down to Kew in lilac-time, in lilac-time, in lilac time.”

I’m dog-sitting again in East Boston, and one day after work, the neighbor kids were selling fistfuls of branches from their grandfather’s lilac for $3. I bought a bunch – a steal if I’ve ever seen one! – and enjoyed them in the kitchen for several days. They’re the same deep, rich color as these lovelies from Back Bay, below.

Earlier this week, I stopped to sniff a tall lilac on my lunch break, and a woman walked up to join me. “They’re my favorite,” she said. We wished each other a good day, and then she turned, walked a few paces away, and called, “Oh, you have to come stand right here!” I walked over and was hit by a wave of lilac scent. The whole exchange, and the moment of connection, was a gift.

Cambridge has any number of old, beautiful lilacs, and I was afraid I’d miss them this spring. But I did sneak over one evening last week, and got to sniff the lilacs on a side street near Darwin’s (below), and the hedge of them near the Longfellow House garden.

This year’s lilac time is nearly over: the azaleas are blazing out, and the rhododendrons are coming. But it has been glorious, in all my neighborhoods (old and new). And I’m so grateful.

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