Rose Gardens

I met my friend, Terry, at the Central Park Rose Garden in Schenectady. Unlike Yaddo with its ordered garden, each rose bush equidistant from the other, surrounded by beautiful statuary and the new elegant pergola, Schenectady's rose garden is a riotous symphony of flowers, one bush melting into the next.

Terry and I admired the roses and then walked on a woodsy path deeper into the park, taking turns at whim, until we realized that all paths led to a giant pine. As if in awe, the other trees stood a few steps away giving space to the old one.

After continuing our walk into surrounding neighborhoods, we headed back to the rose garden where we spent several minutes sitting on a bench in the breeze, visiting, and gazing at the roses.

Last week, the final week of May, when I realized that roses were blooming, I was disturbed. It was a month too early. What did this say about our climate, our summer-like spring, our lack of snow over the winter? Erin, Education Director at the Pine Bush, said, "It is almost hard to enjoy the roses when we know that it is not good for them to be blooming now," and I agreed. I watched my white aromatic bush in the backyard bloom profusely, the red ones on the fence opened with just a touch of magenta, and the salmon-colored roses bordering my neighbor's property greeted the morning sun. I enjoyed them but I could not forget that something was wrong and this was the evidence.

Today, I knew I should come to this garden in Central Park, even if it was weeks early. I knew it would be beautiful as it always is. Terry and I compared the various pink shades, the yellows, and magentas, and then meandered into the shady rhododendrons, also out in full. We thought of all the volunteer hours that went into making this a haven and we appreciated the efforts of others. So, come to the garden, smell the sweet smells, and see the beauty of the rose.