Dear friend,
What do you think about when you hear a phrase “flowers and the sea”? First of all, I see a rosa rugosa. A wooden path that takes me to the sea goes past a small seaside cemetery and then through a wild garden of willows, small pines, reeds and bushes of wild roses. In early summer they bloom pink, but in autumn I nibble on the sweet red skin of rose hips. Is it vitamin C or vitamin sea that gives me the energy for a long and dark Latvian winter, I still haven’t figured out.
At the beach I notice other plants, that apparently love to grow in the white quartz sand. Their succulent stems rise up like a strange forest if I would be as small as a lady bug. The other day as I pushed my bike home, one green bush had suddenly turned into a pink pillow – the European searocket or Cakile maritima. So beautiful in the middle of a deserted beach on the background of the sea. I wanted to see more flowers by the sea, so I asked on Twitter to share photos from all over the world.
I also started to look for flowers in the Sea Library books.
In Tove Jansson’s “Moominpappa at Sea” I found a magical garden painted by Moominmamma as a mural on the walls of a lighthouse. It grew out of mother’s desperate longing for her own garden left at home and the fact that she didn’t really like to be in the middle of the furious sea. Turned out that she can walk inside the mural and have a refreshing nap in the orchard. Tove Jansson was very good at painting murals, too. In one she depicted the life at the bottom of the sea. Check them out in my post.
In Virginia Woolf’s novel “The Waves” I find little Rhoda playing with white petals in a brown basin of water. She imagines that petals are boats and that her basin is the sea. Her imagination took me by the hand and lead to a strange place where artist creates and also wants to control, but most of all she reminded me of the power of imagination and the power of the sea…
This summer I watched our flowers growing and blooming in pots on the sunlit terrace and read Derek Jarman’s memoir “Modern Nature”. His garden at Prospect Cottage is always on my mind when I see flowers by the sea. And the quote that his garden’s boundaries is the horizon reminds me why I do what I do so close to the sea.
Then there is something entirely else what I see when I think of sea and flowers. I go under the sea, deep down where fantastic gardens grow. I read a lot of Jules Verne this summer and walked the seabed side by side with Captain Nemo, Professor Annorax and others.
It was amazing to discover that there really is an underwater garden with basil, strawberries, lettuce and orchids growing under the Mediterranean Sea, and that it is called the Nemo’s Garden. I have started new interview series for Sea Library’s young readers “When I Grow Up” to introduce with mind-blowing and inspiring professions connected with the sea. This week I interviewed Sergio Gamberini, an underwater gardener and creator of the Nemo’s Garden.
From picture book shelves I took Dahlov Ipcar’s children book from the 1960s “Deep Sea Farm” about a merman who looks after fish and crabs, and lobsters and who grows food in his underwater garden with help of two blue sea horses, accompanied by dogfish and catfish. It is a beautiful book that was sent to the Sea Library as a gift from San Francisco. I can lend it or any other book to you, just let me know, what would you like to read.
It is a grey and warm Sunday morning. Birds are singing in the nearby woods. Anemones are blooming on my terrace. I take my hot cup of coffee and walk around the garden. Copper coloured oak leaves on the ground and acorns under my bare feet tell about the autumn that has arrived despite this lovely week of Indian summer.
After windy or rainy nights my eyes search for fallen treasure: oak moss tentacles. I stoop and collect them, to slowly create a dreamy underwater garden of my own on the red shelf of the Sea Library. In the middle of it all is a diver with an aqualung made from clay and glazed dark green and brown, and there’s also an octopus. This wonder was made by my dad in the sixties when he was just a boy. When he grew up he became an artist.
Next week I will unfold another map and search for entirely different things in the books and the world around me. But before that, please, write me, what do you see when you hear the phrase “flowers and the sea”?
Yours,
Anna
***
Mīļais draugs,
Kas Tev ienÄk prÄtÄ, kad dzirdi frÄzi “puÄ·es un jÅ«ra”? PirmkÄrt, redzu mežrozÄ«tes. DÄļu laipa, kas mani ved no mazas piejÅ«ras kapsÄtas lÄ«dz pludmalei, vijas caur vÄ«tolu, niedru, mazu priedÄ«Å”u un mežrozÄ«Å”u krÅ«mu savvaļam dÄrzam. VasarÄ rozes zied rozÄ, bet rudenÄ« plÅ«cu un nograužu mežrozÄ«Å”u augļu sarkanÄs un saldÄs miziÅas. Vai tas ir C vai jÅ«ras vitamÄ«ns, kas man dod enerÄ£iju garajÄm un tumÅ”ajÄm Latvijas ziemÄm, joprojÄm neesmu lÄ«dz galam sapratusi, bet auglÄ«Å”i garÅ”o un atsauc atmiÅÄ bÄrnÄ«bÄ dzerto sÄ«rupu.
PludmalÄ pamanu arÄ« citus augus, kuriem baltajÄs kvarca smiltÄ«s acÄ«mredzami patÄ«k. Sukulentu zariÅi slejas kÄ savdabÄ«gi meži, ja vien es bÅ«tu maza kÄ mÄrÄ«te. Nesen, stumjot riteni mÄjup, pamanÄ«ju, ka viens zaļŔ puduris ā Baltijas ŔķÄpene ā ir pÄrtapis rozÄ spilvenÄ. Tik ļoti patika, kÄ tas izskatÄs pludmales Ŕķietami neauglÄ«gajÄ tuksnesÄ« uz jÅ«ras fona, ka jautÄju Twitter, lai kÄds atsÅ«ta vÄl bildes ar puÄ·Äm jÅ«ras krastÄ. SaÅÄmu kadrus no visas pasaules.
SÄku puÄ·es meklÄt arÄ« JÅ«ras bibliotÄkas grÄmatÄs.
TÅ«ves Jansones grÄmatÄ “TÄtis un jÅ«ra”, kas bibliotÄkÄ pieejama arÄ« latviski, ir dÄrzs, kas top kÄ sienas gleznojums uz bÄkas sienas. Muminmamma tik ļoti ilgojas pÄc savÄm dobÄm, kas palika mÄjÄs, un tik ļoti nespÄj pierast pie aurojoÅ”Äs jÅ«ras visapkÄrt, ka sÄk uz sienas gleznot puÄ·es. IzrÄdÄs, ka tas ir maÄ£isks dÄrzs, kurÄ mamma var ieiet un nosnausties ÄbeļdÄrzÄ. ArÄ« TÅ«ve Jansone ir radÄ«jusi vairÄkus sienas gleznojumus, tostarp atainojusi dzÄ«vi jÅ«ras dzÄ«lÄs. AplÅ«ko tos manÄ bloga rakstÄ!
Virdžīnijas Vulfas romÄnÄ “ViļÅi” ir maza meitene Roda, kura spÄlÄjas ar baltÄm ziedlapiÅÄm bļodÄ ar Å«deni. ViÅa iztÄlojas, ka ziedlapiÅas ir laivas un bļoda ir jÅ«ra. Meitenes iztÄle mani aizveda uz savÄdu vietu, kur mÄkslinieks ne tikai rada, bet arÄ« kontrolÄ radÄ«to pasauli, kÄ arÄ« atgÄdina par iztÄles un jÅ«ras spÄku…
Å ovasar rÅ«pÄjoties par puÄ·Äm uz mÅ«su saulainÄs terases un vÄrojot kÄ tÄs uzzied, daudz lasÄ«ju Dereka DžÄrmena dienasgrÄmatu “ModernÄ daba”. ViÅa Prospekta kotedžas piejÅ«ras dÄrzs ir domÄs klÄtesoÅ”s, kad vien redzu ziedu pudurus pludmalÄ. CitÄts, ka viÅa dÄrza robežas ir horizonts, man atgÄdina, kÄlab visu, ko daru un radu, es daru jÅ«ras tuvumÄ.
Tad ir kaut kas pilnÄ«gi cits, ko redzu, domÄjot par puÄ·Äm un jÅ«ru. IztÄle ved mani dziļi zem jÅ«ras, kur dzelmÄ zeļ pasakaini dÄrzi. Å ovasar izlasÄ«ju Žila Verna grÄmatas, kuras bibliotÄkÄ vari aizÅemties arÄ« latviski, un pastaigÄjos pa jÅ«ras gultni lÄ«dzÄs kapteinim Nemo, profesoram Anoraksam un citiem.
Biju patiesi pÄrsteigta, uzzinot, ka tÄds zemÅ«dens dÄrzs tik tieÅ”Äm eksistÄ, un VidusjÅ«ras dzÄ«lÄs tiek audzÄts baziliks, zemenes, salÄti un orhidejas. TurklÄt to tÄ arÄ« sauc ā par Nemo dÄrzu. Esmu uzsÄkusi jaunu interviju sÄriju “Kad izaugÅ”u liels” JÅ«ras bibliotÄkas jaunajiem lasÄ«tÄjiem, lai iepazÄ«stinÄtu ar pÄrsteidzoÅ”Äm un iedvesmojoÅ”Äm profesijÄm vai nodarbÄm, kas saistÄ«tas ar jÅ«ru. Å onedÄļ intervÄju Serdžio GamberÄ«nÄ« ā zemÅ«dens dÄrznieku un Nemo dÄrza izveidotÄju.
No bÄrnu grÄmatu plaukta nocÄlu bilžu grÄmatu, kuru seÅ”desmitajos gados sarakstÄ«ja un ilustrÄja amerikÄÅu mÄksliniece DÄlova Ipkara. “Dzelmes ferma” angļu valodÄ stÄsta par nÄruāfermeri, kurÅ” rÅ«pÄjas par zivÄ«m, krabjiem un omÄriem un audzÄ pÄrtiku savÄ zemÅ«dens dÄrzÄ. Darbos viÅam palÄ«dz divi zili jÅ«raszirgi, suÅzivis un kaÄ·zivs. Å o skaisto grÄmatu bibliotÄkai kÄ dÄvanu atsÅ«tÄ«ja no Sanfrancisko. Ja vÄlies to vai jebkuru citu grÄmatu aizÅemties, dod man ziÅu!
Å orÄ«ts ir silts un lietains. Kokos dzied putni, uz terases joprojÄm zied anemones. Ar kÅ«poÅ”u kafijas krÅ«zi izstaigÄju dÄrzu. Uz zemes sakrituÅ”Äs vara krÄsas ozollapas un zÄ«les zem plikajÄm pÄdÄm liecina, ka tomÄr ir iestÄjies rudens, lai cik jauka bÅ«tu bijusi atvasaras nedÄļa.
PÄc vÄjainÄm vai lietainÄm naktÄ«m ar acÄ«m meklÄju no zariem nokrituÅ”us Ä·Ärpjus. Lasu tos un pamazÄm kolekcionÄju pati savÄ zemÅ«dens dÄrzÄ uz JÅ«ras bibliotÄkas sarkanÄ plaukta. DÄrza vidÅ« ir mÄla Å«denslÄ«dÄjs un astoÅkÄjis, glazÄti brÅ«nos, zaļos un pelÄkos toÅos. VÄl mazs puika bÅ«dams, to seÅ”desmitajos uztaisÄ«ja mans tÄtis. Kad viÅÅ” izauga, kļuva par mÄkslinieku.
NÄkamnedÄļ atlocÄ«Å”u jau jaunu karti, lai grÄmatÄs un pasaulÄ sev apkÄrt meklÄtu jau pavisam ko citu. Bet tikmÄr atraksti man, kas tev ienÄk prÄtÄ, kad dzirdi frÄzi “puÄ·es un jÅ«ra”?
Anna
Sea Library 
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