I miss my garden back in San Mateo. Due to its sometimes unmanageable size, I do not always miss gardening, but I do miss the garden itself. I started a little container garden here in Metz on my windowsill, primarily because I like to cook with fresh herbs, but I finally bought a little chrysanthemum last week, because the sill needed a little brightening!Even in small towns in France, living is relatively compact. Single family homes are not as common, and buildings tend to have little to no greenspace around them. It is no wonder that it is so common to see plants on display on windowsills! I know that even though my little collection began for practical purposes, I do appreciate the small connection it gives me to something more, for lack of a better word, organic, than the concrete that surrounds me. I suspect it does that for many others, as well.
Also common in France are heavy-duty light-blocking shutters, which seem to be unique to this country. I have a roll-down version on my window, and at night, I lower it to the tops of my plants, so I can still see them, but it blocks the view of the driveway. In the morning, my plants are the first thing I see when I look out my window.
