Courtyard After Rain

Good morning. Sunday morning. After Saturday night gathering for lawn games and s’mores. Good Sunday morning after Saturday night rain. Unanticipated rain. Wet morning, but barely, now that the sun is out. A reminder that we’ve come along way in one year. The photos in today’s post — imperfect snapshots book ending the difference that 365 days make — provide a couple of “now and then” comparisons of Rosslyn’s icehouse courtyard after rain.

The first photograph (above) rewinds one year to the wet, muddy mess that challenged us much of last spring and summer. As you can imagine, not the best conditions for building stone walls and landscaping. We persisted, but the going was slooow. And messy!

This morning we appreciate the dwindling damp evaporating off as the sun rises higher in the bluebird sky. Hardscaping and softscaping complete, the icehouse gardens absorbs and manages rain a whole lot better than it did one year ago.

Here’s another flashback to more discouraging days.

At the time we were well behind schedule. I’d begun working on the stone wall with Tony, investing long, physically demanding days to try and get us back on schedule. Days like this made moving large rocks more difficult and more dangerous. When it was this wet we prioritized cutting, grinding, and shaping stone rather than lifting. Damp conditions were good for mortar work as well — slowing the drying time and improving the joints — so long as the rain didn’t restart before we could cover everything with tarps.

One year later, stonework is complete, plantings are established, grass is lush, and the memories of this hard won journey are still fresh enough to heighten my appreciation and gratitude for this remarkable oasis. This morning Rosslyn’s courtyard after rain is mesmorizing. Birdsong has replaced the the scream of a demo saw. Fluttering butterflies have replaced stone chips and sparks arcing away from a grinder. Hydrangeas and shasta daisies have replaced slippery clay. Stone pavers have replaced coarsely crushed stone barely visible beneath muddy puddles. And memories of croquet and bocce, laughter and libations, fire pit stories and goodnight guffaws still linger this muggy morning. A summer sanctuary for family and friendships built on a foundation of weather challenges and so much hardworking. As I appreciate how far we’ve come, I’m overcome with gratitude to the many who made this dream possible. Thank you, all!

I’ll close today’s update with an unfinished courtyard after rain poem that’s still germinating…

Courtyard After Rain

Sunrise sparkles
in damp air
and dewy grass;
butterflies braid 
levity 
and laughter
from last night's
firelight and
lawn games and
stories and
smoky s'mores.
Today's tune 
of transformation
of perseverance
of mud-to-marvel
of struggle to 
sanctuary 
of challenge-to-charm
still resonates
with the echoes of
hauling and grinding 
stones reimagined 
and repurposed 
and remortared.
Sweaty soil
and toil tilled
into blooms and birdsong
where saws screamed
and puddles pooled.