Compost Studios

Yesterday we had a mini family reunion with relatives from Virginia.  My son, age 12, led all the younger boys in a hunt for critters in the forests surrounding the picnic area. My Boy is a lizard whisperer. Even lightning fast wild things will sit quietly in his hand. If you look closely at this lizard, you'll see he's smiling.

Photos of a local natural area by my daughter, age 10.

(No cropping, no photo editing techniques.)

June 22, 2008

Photo by Di

The most wasted of all days is one without laughter. 

 ~e.e. cummings

Dark clouds roll over the Potomac River cliffs

The end was within sight. I was unpacking my last boxes, making my final trips to Goodwill, tucking stray items into closets and cabinets, hanging my artwork, and anticipating buying a loveseat for our bedroom and a lamp for the foyer.

I finally felt fully and happily in my house in Virginia, ready to move back into the mainstream of life, cultivate friendships, resume working.

And then the dark clouds rolled in.

We went camping last weekend and managed to miss the rain, but when it finally arrived Sunday afternoon, it came with a vengeance. FIVE inches of rain fell overnight.

Monday morning a trip to the storage room in the basement to grab a suitcase led to a horrifying discovery--wet carpet and walls and no sign the water had come in through the windows.

Hours later, with the carpet pulled back and paneling removed from the studs, we saw a big crack in our basement wall. My daughter's room was so wet we had to move her out of it.

A foundation and masonry repair expert arrived, looked at the damage and let us know we were looking at a repair job that would cost tens of thousands of dollars. A structural engineer is coming by tomorrow to give his assessment. Another specialist is due later this week.

Happiness at Chez V has been squashed and smothered.

These beautiful plants in my front yard, photographed last week? We'll lose them all when they excavate the wall down to the foundation.

The massive oak tree in this photo that I posted two weeks ago? It died as a result of last summer's drought. Its enormous branches, overhanging our roof, were a threat and so the tree was removed at a cost of nearly $2,000.

In the process of removing the tree, our front porch rail was smashed and broken:

And did I mention my heating and cooling system isn't working? 

If we're forced to replace it, it will cost several thousand dollars.

Those of you who have been following my story in the last year know it has been full of ups and downs, that I've been bullied, that I've struggled to keep faith in the institutions I used to believe in, that my family structure has been rattled and shaken, that we endured a tremendous amount of stress during this move, and that I've had moments when I wondered just what would be left of my life when the dust settled and I was finally in Virginia.

Initially, it seemed to be a smooth transition, there were lots of joyous moments, and I was finally beginning to exhale.

But now, the house that I have lived in less than two months and love is draining our financial and emotional resources.

 The dream that our toughest challenges were behind us has dissipated.

The fragile peace I was cobbling together is falling apart.

Somehow the jagged, muddy crack undermining our home is more than a little symbolic.

But today on the phone I joked with Peter in Antwerp that maybe I shouldn't have the crack repaired. Maybe I'll pretend I'm back in Belgium where the fractured stone walls are transformed into something beautiful by the hardy plants that tenaciously hang onto whatever they can, grow even when they seem to lack what they need to thrive, and bloom in spite of everything, among the stones. 

Peter and I, we're looking at our broken homes and trying to see a garden. What else can we do?

May 13, 2008

There is so much in the world for us all if we only have the eyes to see it, and the heart to love it, and the hand to gather it to ourselves...

--Lucy Maud Montgomery

April 24, 2008

...at the amazing work of some student photographers in Belgium. My friend Di judged a photography competition in Brugges and the winning entries are impressive. There are three first place photos that you can view here .  If you choose to leave a comment, know that it will be immensely appreciated by these young artists who dared to put their work forward and have it judged.

Peter and Di buy all their clothes at this hip Antwerp shop.

Copyright 2008 Veronica McCabe Deschambault. All rights reserved.

Our new home has many beautiful built-in architectural details, many of them salvaged antiques from the 19th century. But my favorite detail may be this one located in the pantry, circa 2004. 

April 4, 2008

A parade of hyacinths marches around a border and perfumes the air.