day four

Jean carpeted the ground among the aspen with wildflower seed every spring. The birds would quickly devour most of it, but a good portion would survive through the summer. He had a pond dug just north-west of the house, about 20 yards into the front yard. The pond was bordered by japanese maples and a variety of ferns. There was a pathway surrounding the ferns and maple, and on the outer circle of the pathway was a hedge of small fir, dense and concealing. There were a few clearings along the shore of the pond where you could watch the frogs, ducks and turtles fumble about after the slow mosquitoes.
Behind the house, beyond the black oak, Jean coaxed along a patch of wild blackberries. It didn't take much convincing. Before Jean and Carissa's second year in their home, the blackberries had created a wall of brambles and bees behind the tree, creating a natural fence.
Lupins were scattered throughout the front yard, along with patches of native species. All in all, this is how Jean began his garden. He added things through the years, but this was the chassis.
The garden, as I mentioned, was his gift to Carissa, who was very grateful and happy for the wonderful present, as it was truly a wondrous site to behold. However, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear when walking alone through the garden on a warm bright day. The colors would come alive and seem to envelop her in their manic spectrum. The smells of the different flowers would blend and seemed to hypnotize her, she would feel her legs fall away beneath her, and her arms would fall down to catch her slowly. On a number of occassions Jean would come out to the garden looking for Carissa and find her asleep in the small vineyard, or curled up along the pond. To Carissa, the garden possessed mystical powers and she was afraid that one day it would swallow her whole.
No, Carissa much preferred the garden in the winter on a cold and bleary day.