The lilac bush in the forefront of this photo must have been planted when people were still skating on McKernan lake. (This pond was filled in right after the war.) Its trunk is so gnarled and open like a gargoyle that it’s hard to understand how this bush survives. I was tempted to cut it down  but my daughter stopped me. She said that it looks like the “Secret Garden”. She is right. When I come in through the back gate this part of the garden is always in deep shadows. It makes me feel like I am entering a story book, only it’s my story and the story of our friends and family.