Looking for peace and order in chaos

Am I the only one who gets into a situation where I feel totally surrounded by chaos, so much so that I can't decide what to do next, and I end up doing nothing?

Today has been that way.  I went to New York to visit my older daughter for Mother's Day and to attend an event Sunday night she had helped organized (I wanted to get my photograph taken with the famous author, but she said no).  I had left home in a whirlwind, learning that a dishwasher I bought for a cottage I've renovated was broken and will have to be replaced.  Then, I noticed that the curtain rods  a workman installed were up against the ceiling, and it would be impossible to put the sort of curtains I needed on the rods.

This is very un-serious stuff, but then to get clothes washed, pick up dry cleaning, get the dogs' food and beds ready to take to the kennel and get packed, etc., etc.,  I ended up leaving the house in a frenzy and barely made it to the park-ride at the airport to catch my plane.

I came back to dishes in the sink, an unmade bed, papers scattered everywhere, floors that crunch when you walk on them, a million calls to make and schedules to change and on and on.  Once again, none of this is in the least serious in the scheme of life, but are minor annoyances that made me spin my wheels until I had to rush out to a meeting downtown at 11:30 and finally make it back to the computer to do this entry.

But, this is the soothing part for me.  I love looking at garden pictures, thinking up what to write - if life could only be doing this blog.

Anyway, I chose a photograph from Bill Hudgins' garden that is very calming to me.  First, I like the urns sitting there in a row.  Beneath them, Bill has organized ground covers in a pattern, and the whole is backed by boxwoods from his extensive collection.

In my next life, I am going to be an organized person.  My bags will be packed days in advance, and I will have paid my bills before the last minute, and I will be able to find things on my desk without rifling through piles of paper.

Most importantly, I'll be able to create a quiet and beautiful scene like the one above, so that I can just go out and stroll around the garden and have time to stop and smell the roses, or, as in this case, stop and appreciate the beautiful order of things.