My Sister Laura

     I have recently faced up to and admitted: I'm not a good gardener, and, although I love gardens, I don't love gardening.

    "That's all right," a friend said, comfortingly. "You can't be good at everything." 

    That was consoling, with its implication that I was good at some things. 

    Then I thought of my sister Laura.

    Laura is good at writing. She has published more than twenty books—about gardening, crafts, folklore, wildflowers, etc., etc.

One of Laura's many books, with her illustrations

    She is good at art. Her book about endangered plants of the Southeast, illustrated with her paintings, is being published by the University of Georgia. 

A proposed cover for Laura's upcoming book

    She is good at sewing. She's also a weaver. Her intricate and beautiful quilts have been in several shows.

Shown at the Siskiyou Crest Arts and Science Festival in Williams, Oregon

    She is a classical pianist. Beethoven, Mozart, and "Rhapsody in Blue" are pretty up there for skill.

    She is an excellent cook and hostess, creating beautiful flower arrangements and table settings. She makes tediously formed hors d'oeuvres for fancy parties, pizzas in her wood-fired patio oven for family get-togethers, and cookies with her grandchildren. She published a cookbook. 

    She is a skilled botanist. And she hikes.

Identifying wildflowers in the Siskiyous  photo by Margaret della Santina

    She started a nonprofit of sewing-crafts for women in Haiti.

   She dotes on and gives abundant energy to her grandchildren, from doing crafts with them to giving them piano lessons to going to their soccer and basketball games.

    And guess what? She's also a superb gardener. Her front garden stops people as they walk by; her back garden is lush with flowers and landscaping. 

Laura's back yard

        

Maybe there really are people who are good at everything—because, to top it off, she is also a wonderful sister whom I love.

This picture was taken 10 years ago, but isn't it sweet?