“Urban Gardening Through the Apocalypse”

This piece by Jennifer Weiner in the New York Times speaks to the refuge that is the Jardin in these COVID times - for those of us who have always loved nurturing green living things, for people who are new to it and putting in their first victory garden. 
There is a visceral pull to the dirt and the plants.  And maybe it’s an evolutionary thing, a survival and instinctive draw - for my memory of this year’s garden will be the edible plants, the ones that I planted as a hedge against an unstable food supply chain.  My plan for this year had always been to try to start to intersperse the veggies with the flowers.  It became an imperative this year, maybe even at the expense of the flowers.  Next year, maybe a better balance, to draw in more pollinators, and add a bit more cheerful color.  Maybe next year nursery visits will be safe again and there will be new flowers to cover.  Though the financial situation may dictate otherwise ... maybe I will dig into the seed packets that I found in organizing this year instead, or collect from the Mother Garden.
In any event, this year, the Jardin has been my salvation, one of the diversions that has pulled me through this far.  That’s what I will remember.  Thank goodness for the terrace.