Country Garden

Madalynn Sedgwick is an undergraduate majoring in English and minoring in Creative Writing. She is the President of the Creative Writing Club and was accepted into Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society, in the fall of 2024. Madalynn is also a veteran, serving six years in the U.S. Army.

Posts form a square, marking an unkept spot in the yard.

“We should do something with it,” I say.

“Like what?” He says.

I shrug, unsure what to do with this square on rented land.

“Maybe a garden? So we can grow our own veggies?”

I give him a look. He knows I do not have a green thumb.

The poor succulents in my office can vouch for that.

“Maybe something for the pollinators?” I suggest,

Immediately seeing the vibrant colors waving in the wind.

“The what?”

“The pollinators… Bees, butterflies, beetles.”

He shrugs. “Do whatever you want.”

So we mow the grass as short as it will go.

Rent a tiller and dig up the fresh soil, burying the remaining grass.

Packets of native wildflower seeds mixed in a giant bowl,

Thrown out on a windy day.

We wait.

Hoping the summer is warm enough,

Wet enough,

To support the little lives,

That the grass will not regrow,

That we’ll reclaim what little wild remains.