Day 9: Noticing the Landscape

Editors like myself are famous for catching the nitty-gritty and pointing out the overlooked corners in any piece of writing. Tonight inspired that same attention to detail, but this time, it included a sweet reward.

Olde Towne Alexandria has been a famous haunt of mine since high school. The charisma and the eclectic atmosphere always draw me back.

The other night, my husband-to-be stopped and said, "Look at the teddy bear!" I looked into the window of "Why Not?" a cute little children's store, but I couldn't see what he was talking about. "No, outside," he said patiently. There, guarding the door, are two boxwood shrubs - but, as is easily overlooked, they are sculpted - one is a teddy bear, the other a rabbit.

I was simply delighted at this sight.

This evening brought me back to the magical place, but this time with a whole group of ladies. Ooh's and ahh's jumped against the "Why Not?" windows and out into the night air. We started considering why it's so easy to miss these adorable little topiaries. For one, Old Towne Alexandria prides itself on window shopping. A walk up and down the streets affords plenteous visions of "could-have" items from wigs and cigars to high art and VIP dining (Congresspersons are frequenters). Secondly, who looks down, when everything is at eye's height? I am willing to bet the "shorter" world discovers this reward more often than the "taller." We concluded that because the windows draw everyone's attention, the shrubs are commonplace accessories for fancy Georgian doors; shrubbery is just part of the landscape.