Escape to Magnolia Gardens in Daydreaming on the Porch

June 30, 2017, 3:48 a.m.
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Public

The kiss of the sun for pardon. The song of the birds for mirth. One is nearer God’s heart in a garden than anywhere else on Earth.

Dorothy Frances Gurney

I have four places that are my favorite refuges from the demands of caregiving for a parent with dementia and just from the stress of living in this increasingly disturbing and crazy world. I am planning to write about each of them in this and future entries and post some of my favorite photos taken on my many visits to them.

Now that I am retired and still have the same caregivers working the same hours, I am able to get away to these parks, nature preserves and gardens when I normally would be at work instead of hurrying to get to one of them during brief windows of opportunity during my weekends off. This is turning out to be the best thing about retirement: having the freedom to do things I really enjoy when I want to. It’s not that I am less plagued with anxiety and worry about Mom, but rather, I have more time now to get away and enjoy solitude, quiet and natural beauty. The heat of summer slows me down each year about now, but I take advantage of every opportunity I can. I am spending long hours reading and relaxing on the porch, but I need to get out of the house for a portion of each day.

One of those special places I often visit is Magnolia Gardens and it will be the first in my series of entries on those four refuges. Each year I buy a membership for $55 and get in to the gardens without having the pay the $20 fee. I can assure you I get my money’s worth. I go at least once but often 2-3 times a month. Each time I turn off the busy highway and enter that natural sanctuary and travel down the long road lined with majestic live oaks, tension and anxiety drain away for a time. It’s restorative to the soul.

Here are some of my recent photos of the gardens, one of the most popular destinations for tourists visiting Charleston. I know how to avoid the crowds and find the quiet, less visited places. But it’s a large area and never so busy that I don’t enjoy all of it.

The last picture in this post is of one of my favorite gardens in the historic district of Charleston. It’s the one with my favorite garden statue, “Cat taking a break from gardening,” which I have photographed often over the years.