Ode to Westcroft Gardens
by Gail Albin February 2011
Grosse Ile Creative Writing Club
Grosse Ile is a little bit of paradise in so many ways,
It may be hard to choose one place to spend my days.
Westcroft Gardens comes in as my very first choice,
When I go there, in my heart and soul, I do rejoice.
The farm is Michigan?s oldest owned by one family,
It is the home of rhododendron, azalea and the day lily.
Denise de Beausset represents the future generation,
She will advise and help you at her check-out station.
Twenty-seven acres of pleasure for each of my senses,
Watch eagle and hawk soar over land-bound fences.
In January it?s such a long time before
I can return to buy plants and make my spirits soar.
Would that friendly dog stroll out to meet me at my car
Wagging his tail and treating me like a rock star?
The drive to this destination is pretty along the way,
Come Halloween I must go there for a wagon ride on hay.
Another nice feature is the petting zoo,
You'll be meeting goats Clyde and Shade; there are two.
There?re potbellied pigs, ducks, a rooster and some hens,
They all have fancy names and live in their spacious pens.
The zoo animals don?t mind getting a treat from a machine,
They will eat from your hand; then you get a towel to clean.
Hanging plants are mixed with several choice varieties,
If I put up a tent and lived there, I would be free of anxieties.
I was a farm girl and that?s the reason I feel so calm,
When I?m there, the fragrances are like a sweet balm.
There?re roses, flowering plants too many to count,
I?d love to fill a truck, but I better check my bank account.