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your space

Write to us at Home Readers’ Letters, PO Box 1802, Cape Town 8000; email editor@homemag.co.za, fax 021 408 3046, and join our Facebook group (facebook.com/homemag) or follow us on Instagram @TuisHomeMag. When submitting a letter, please include your full name and the town in which you live.

W I N N I N G L E T T E R

Lessons from my garden

Regine le Roux of Hout Bay writes

Recently, the overgrown weeds in my garden became embarrassing! I started by pulling out the easier ones, but when I got to the bigger bushes, I had to tap into my Better Half Mark’s toolbox.

Time spent in the garden gives you time to think. As I was hacking away, I realised that the weeds symbolise issues. First, we need to recognise that we have to deal with things. Too often we bury stuff and hope it’ll just go away. This creates a wonderful environment for these weeds (issues) to fester and thrive.

It also doesn’t help to just cut away leaves and branches. You need to extract the roots; otherwise, they will grow back even stronger.

As I was looking at the sandpit I’d created, I absent-mindedly tugged at a piece of ivy that had taken over a tree. This turned into an obsession with getting rid of ivy for the next few weeks.

During ‘Project Ivy’, I put my hand into the fork of a tree and was greeted by a snake. I went inside, took a few deep breaths and contemplated whether it was in fact a good day for gardening. (Isn’t it crazy how quickly we come up with excuses when faced with challenges?) Once I’d calmed down, I roped in Mark’s help to re-home the snake. When I encountered a second snake two weeks later, it was much less of a palaver and I worked around it before calling on Mark. The next mission was to get rid of the dead ivy branches: ‘Project Excavation’. I found the most magical things like pieces of an old plate, oyster shells and beautiful pebbles. The other day, my garden gifted me a silver ring!

So here’s what I’ve learnt:

• Start; even a small start is a start. • You decide how to deal with challenges. • It’s OK to ask for help. • Stop worrying about things that you have no control over. • Treasures await, the deeper you dig. • Your work is never done; maintenance is just as important. • Take time to reflect, enjoy and celebrate all your hard work!

My own stamp

Lyn Crawford of Port Alfred writes

Two years ago, we relocated from Centurion to Port Alfred in the Eastern Cape; the townhouse we moved into was roomy, well built and in good condition. But it didn’t ‘talk to me’. It had no character. I’ve slowly been putting my creative mark on our new home. One thing that really niggled me was a practical but ugly sink in our courtyard.

One day while parking at the downtown shopping centre, I spied an unloved picture frame at the rubbish bins and brought it home. While walking on the beach a few days later, I picked up attractive driftwood and stones. This got me thinking: my collected odds and ends were begging to be used and loved at the ugly outside sink.

I spray-painted the frame black, collected the driftwood and stones, and dug out tatty plastic flowers I’d never had the heart to dispose of. It took me a morning to set up my corner of art and a few plants were added for extra oomph.

You can make a lovely home from odds and ends for very little money. We’re retired but still yearn to live in a comfortable, attractive home that reflects our journey into old age.

I N S H O RT

Decorating my beach house in Tergniet on the Garden Route has been a labour of love. I thought I’d share this bathroom nook with your readers. The vanity is an old transistor radio cabinet that I transformed with a coat of paint. The unique basin and the beautiful tile covering the gap where the radio once was were custom made by an artist in Parys. – Mariaan Scheepers, Boksburg

Before

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