Petunias

Possibly one of the hottest days of the year so far. Minimal dog walks to keep the dogs cool has made me realise how much time I usually spend treading the streets.

With encouragement I've tried to draw another character from my daily walks


Her front garden is surrounded on three sides by a substantial fence and stands out from the neatly manicured gardens beside it by its fortress like appearance. I saw her most days with a small black yapping, snarling dog. Our conversation usually covered the weather but on one occasion she began to explain her feud with the neighbour who had tried to poison her dog. With a suitable mixture of indignation, surprise and sympathy I eventually made my way home resolving to resort to cheerful but perhaps long distance waves.

Some time later I recounted part of this interaction including a suitable amount of disbelief and curiosity with a neighbour who told me that apparently several neighbours had also tried to poison this dog. Clearly things were not as they seemed and further detail revealed that her daughter had died in tragic circumstances and the resultant behaviour was the outcome. The fortress garden took on a new meaning and watching her potter around with her yapping dog in the front garden made me think of the secrets we carry around with us and how our lives and those around us are affected and influenced by seemly short superficial interactions.