A blast from the past...

I went to files of some old websites I used to manage and came across a ditty from 10 years ago...

As a little boy, I will always remember enjoying the products of my father's garden; eating carrots just pulled out and rinsed off under the hose, watching the "chemistry" of making a sweet wine out of berries, lying face down in the grass, and just playing in the garden's dirt. Until he passed away he grew enough vegetables and berries on his small plot of land to feed himself and my mother, and to share the bounty with friends and neighbors. My father composted before it was in; mulched with grass clippings before mulching mowers were on the drawing board; and gardened without pesticides and herbicides before Rachel Carson warned us about their dangers.
It is with that upbringing that I approach my own yard and garden. My grass hasn't seen a chemical in the past 17 years (since we moved in). I feel secure that my kids can play on the grass or plant their face into it just like I did. I also feel secure that the vegetables I grow are safe and without chemical aids (?). You see, I grow "with nature in mind".
A few years ago when giving a talk about backyard habitats someone asked me how I got started and so interested in gardening, habitat creation, and nature. I never stopped to think about the reasons or motivations before that moment. But right then and there, I realized it was because of my father and his gardens. Somehow the organic gardening bug was in my veins. It was never a conscious effort to create an organic yard and garden, it was natural. My childhood memories made it natural that I try to protect my own children from pesticides and herbicides. And it was an easy transition to extend this protection to birds and other animals.
My yard is very unique in the neighborhood. My front yard used to be all lawn with just three trees. Since moving in, my front yard is now dominated by a small pond, wildflowers, berry plants, and naturalized islands of growth. My backyard is wooded, and where previous owners tried to grow lawn, volunteer trees, shrubs, and plants have been allowed to take over. What lawn we have for the ball games is dominated by what others call weeds. Dandelion, clover, violets, and even crabgrass are just fine by me.
There are so many wonders to be seen in my "yarden". One can watch frogs, toads, and dragonflies in the pond. One can sit under the maple trees and watch the robins raise their young, or one can go into the garden pull up the carrot, rinse it off, and bite down.
Gardening and keeping my yarden organic are in my blood. I know my garden and landscape are benefitting the Earth, Earth's creatures, and my children I hope the same organic bug enters my three sons so they also try to take care of Mother Earth. I just wish there was a magic formula. What made it "natural" for me? What will make it "natural" for my children and others to care for the Earth? I don't know, but maybe it had something to do with those carrots.

Maybe those carrots are the genesis of Peace Garden?