A Trip to the Geranium Farm

Last Thursday, October 20, I went over to the Geranium Farm with my Cursillo reunion group. Kathy, Bill, Janet and I skipped out of work early and took the train over in mid afternoon. Q met us at the station and while Barbara started dinner he gave us a tour of the garden while it was still light enough to see the Farm in its late October glory. What's Her Name and Noodle, two of the house cats, greeted us warily and then headed for higher ground. Ethel Merman, the hummingbird, had left weeks ago for Mexico but we hope to meet her next summer.

After a little liquid refreshment Barbara led us across the street and showed us around St. Luke's, her first church and now her home parish when she's not on the road. It has a lovely nave and sanctuary, and the parish house has a lot of space for activities and classes, and a beautiful kitchen.

We crossed back to the Geranium Farm and Barbara showed us around the front yard and gave us some sprigs of lavender, two different types. The yard is lush and a bit wild with a kind of untamed beauty. There was the obligatory pumpkin and a whole lot of firewood on the front porch. We went in and Barbara then Q started a fire for us, since it was starting to get a bit nippy. We sat around talking and drinking wine, basking in the warm fire, while Barbara finished making a scrumptious and healthy meal of chicken and buckwheat dumplings, asparagus and carrots. For dessert we had a baked apple and vanilla ice cream.

After dinner we sat around the table and had our reunion group, which consisted tonight only of the Piety section, wherein we shared our spiritual aids and told of our moments closest and farthest from Christ since we last met. We then offered our prayer requests, many and various, a new feature to our reunions which has proven to be quite powerful. We ended the evening with another round of Grand Marnier before hustling back to the station and NYC. Thank you, Barbara and Q, for having us over. It was a wonderful reunion. You may pay a virtual visit to the Geranium Farm here: http://www.geraniumfarm.org/home.cfm