The Flowers of West Unity

A couple weeks ago, I took the hand of a handsome brown-eyed fellow and we strolled around my hometown…West Unity, Ohio. I grew up in a white house on a corner with a small garden in the back yard surrounded by the fragrance of lilac bushes in spring, a redbud tree splendid in a gown of blossoms, a row of daffodils and red tulips smiling, roses unfurling in June, and glorious zinnias that created a touchable rainbow in the middle of summer. My first garden experiences were watching my dad hoe rows of beans and my mom start roses beneath canning jars. A garden still grows in the same spot that I knew as a child with a new gardener, my brother Paul.

We started at this spot with so many memories, one hand holding a little hand and the other clutching a camera. We trekked around the town of West Unity searching for flowers, vegetables, inviting entryways, and captivating gardens. As we walked, I told him little stories about life in a rural town, playing softball, and who lived where. We discussed gardens and flowers, “ooing and ahhing” at tall sunflowers and a welcome at one door that included a teapot, cup and saucer on a front porch. A tiny place in my heart grew just a bit bigger when he’d ask a question proving that he too was enjoying our sojourn. So this is what we found…whimsical flowerbeds, lush plantings, entrances to homes that beckoned family and friends with a smile, and so much more. Together, Mimi and Redding discovered that joy for beauty resides in small towns just as much as it does in big ones.
Over the weekend, West Unity, Ohio, celebrated the 175th anniversary of its founding. So here is my gift to a town that holds so many memories, good ones, bad ones, happy ones, sad ones, silly times, and maybe just a regret or two. I’m sorry to say I do not know some of the people whose gardens enchanted me. If you find out that I’ve photographed your garden or yard, please let me know. I’d love to tell the world who turned a piece of earth into a wondrous place.