By JANET HART LEONARD
From the Hart
It’s the most wonderful time of the year.
Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration, but it is MULCH TIME!
I told my husband when we got married that I’d rather have mulch than diamonds. He laughed. I was serious. He smiled … and hugged me.
When Ray from Musselman Landscaping delivered our three yards of mulch on Monday, I actually felt my heart begin to race. Let the fun begin. There’s just something about the look of our yard when new mulch is tucked into the flower beds.
Then … the temperature began to rise into the high 80s. Humidity was like that of July. It was ugly heat and oh, so muggy. I refer to that weather as the mugglies. Brutal.
Patrice, my best friend and partner in work and crime, showed up to help. She really is a saint. We laughed. We sweated. We were armed with shovels, wheelbarrow, rake, bucket, and grit. As gardeners, we were armed but not dangerous. Don’t ever tell us we are too old to be doing anything.
At 66 years old, we are a force to be reckoned with. (Just ask our husbands.) This fascination with mulch began over 20 years ago when I was going through my divorce. I had never been one to work in the yard. Patrice said it would be good therapy. She was right.
For some reason, no matter what days we plan to work in my yard, it will be the hottest days of summer, or in this case, spring.
It took three days with lots of breaks. By noon each day, we had to surrender to the heat. Our endurance isn’t what it used to be. We laughed that we were no longer sweatin’ to the oldies, but we were the sweating oldies.
We love our mulch therapy. Our hard work was rewarded by a trip to Horton’s in Tipton and Gatewood’s in Noblesville for flowers. Let’s just say we rewarded ourselves well.
If you see Patrice, you might ask her about the guns and roses episode.
As far as anyone knows, we are just two sweet little vintage grandmothers who love to play in the dirt and plant flowers. She will always be my best friend and partner in crime. Our only crime may be that of laughing a bit too loudly or enhancing a story we have to tell or drinking too much coffee.
Perhaps it really is the most wonderful time of the year … once the work is done.
Janet Hart Leonard can be contacted at janethartleonard@gmail.com or followed on Facebook or Instagram (@janethartleonard). Visit janethartleonard.com.