I wonder why I bother to herd them out
every late Spring or early Summer
dragging them from the shadow into the light
to grace my back yard patio,
placing them near scented herbs
and honeysuckled hedges
or set to face the rising or the setting sun.
They do look well, I'll say that for them.
A tableau of a postcard idyll in Gardener's World,
Garden Gate or the gold standard Fine Gardening,
inviting to bird watcher, poet and even pre-dinner
G &T drinker if any were at hand.
But given our inclement weather, even in Summer,
and the fact that you prefer a dry, unruffled newspaper
and I a life lived vicariously
the unused wicker chairs must be relieved
when their Summer duty has come to a close
and the season of Samhain* calls them back
into the garden shed for wintering.
Copyright 2026 Cathy Leonard
