• Inspiration

    A Garden Poem to Relax Your Spirit

    Garden in Hawaii, palm trees, araucaria

    I love how reading a poem can almost instantly alleviate stress. So I thought I’d share this sweet bit of verse from W.S. Merwin. Not only does it capture the beauty of an everyday moment, it tells us a little story. We learn about the narrator’s history, age, and how his garden exists with or without him. Merwin lived for many years in Hawaii, restoring a few acres of treed land he preserved as the Merwin Conservancy (not pictured above). Lucky for us he did. If you need a silent…

  • Daily Stress ReLeaf,  Plants & Happiness

    #10 A Poem Digs Deep Into Plant Love

    A Poem Digs Deep Into Plant Love, Daily Stress ReLeaf, Karen Hugg, https://karenhugg.com/2021/02/23/poem-plant-love, #plants #poems #WSMerwin #palmtrees #poetry #naturalworld #destressing #stress #relaxation #mentalhealth #dailystressreleaf

    W.S. Merwin is one of my favorite poets because he’s intensely connected to the natural world. He digs deep into plant love through his words. Not only did he believe in the importance of preserving the environment, he lived for years in Hawaii, gradually restoring a palm forest on Maui. It now houses almost 3,000 palm trees. Within that collection, there are 125 different tree genera, which subdivide into 400 species and 800 varieties. Botanically speaking, that’s incredibly impressive. A Vision Early On I also admire W.S. Merwin (as well…

  • Inspiration

    The Most Effective Way to Keep a Gratitude Journal

    Houseplant Jungle Journal, The Most Effective Way to Keep a Gratitude Journal, Karen Hugg, https://karenhugg.com/2020/02/07/effective-gratitude-journal/ #gratitude #journal #inspiration #howtokeepagratitudejournal #RossGay

    Now that I’ve started a gratitude journal, I’ve been worried that its effects may wear off after a while. If I repeat myself regularly, I may lose the quality of happiness I’ll feel when counting my blessings. I mean, how many times can you feel grateful for a spouse, child, pet, etc? The Various Approaches So I did a little research. A super helpful article in Greater Good Magazine talks about the various techniques for getting the most bang for your blessings buck. They advise to go deep in your…

  • Books,  Plants & Gardening

    Botanical Shakespeare: My Kind of Nerdy Fun

    Botanical Shakespeare Book, Botanical Shakespeare: My Kind of Nerdy Fun, Karen Hugg, https://karenhugg.com/2019/06/13/botanical-shakespeare/ #botanicalshakespeare #books #botany #Shakespeare #plants #poetry #bard #plays

    The book, Botanical Shakespeare, is a delightful compendium of every mention of plants across all of Shakespeare's works. Physically, it's a lovely book, an old style hardback with a silk ribbon and pretty color illustrations. Inside, it's even more engaging, as author Gerit Quealy alphabetically collects the bard's poetic lines on everything from aconitum to yew.