Fall in the back yard

The pond is the centrepiece of this tiny back yard. It was created by mistake - I wanted water and hydro in the drive shed when I first moved here - and didn't pay attention to the fellows who were digging the trenches for the piping. So the clay and topsoil got pulled out of the ground in a heap and weren't separated, probably couldn't be... and when everything was filled in, I had a patch of clay in the middle of the yard instead of a green lawn.

For a few years it sat, not growing grass.

Finally with the help of some neighbourhood teens, we dug it out, and eventually  lined the hole with black plastic which I was to regret after two years, but lined and filled it was... ultimately I purchased seven little fish. And planted sumach around it and now have put in small gardens around it - and stones. It's undergone several incarnations since but now seems to be better organized with a neoprene liner.

Frogs love it, the fish have multiplied - I also was given five largish ones, and now have 26 or 27 - can't be sure 'cause it's so hard to count that many moving bodies.

From the other side - looking towards the house you can see some of the fish enjoying early morning searches for bugs and maybe a handout from me since they swim immediately to where they see me standing and always at supper time when they are usually fed.

The changing colour of the sumach is a delight - and the cosmos on the left has added a lovely feathery splash of pinks, purples and mauves. All in all it makes it all okay - the fact that I haven't trimmed the grass away from the edges, haven't mown the grass in a couple of weeks, nor gotten to the flower beds to remove the ribbon grass that insists on spreading everywhere way more quickly than I could possibly rip it out. It will get done eventually. But having living things - there are often as many as a dozen green and leopard frogs in the pond as well - in my back yard is fun.

Birds land on the edges and drink from it. As do my cats, one of whom watches the fish with fascination but hates to get her feet wet so I'm not worried about their safety. Dragonflies hover and I'm sure have laid eggs in it. Butterflies float around. It seems to be more than a centrepiece for the yard, but for some forms of life as well. What a treasure and a treat.

The view from the deck is astounding with the colour explosion everywhere. The phlox, blackeyed susans, echinacia and even some Sweet William and straw flowers add bright splashes to the garden's green. A feast for the eyes everywhere I look, close to home or around the Valley.

So today on this Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, I'm thankful, grateful that so much has come to be here, making my life more fun and definitely more interesting. For my Canadian friends and family - Happy Thanksgiving, for everyone else - hope you have an interesting weekend full of fun.