As part of the Poetry Neighborhood Celebration, this special presentation highlights the work of Emily Dickinson and her profound connection to nature and the changing seasons. Jim Arnold will share his original research, exploring Dickinson’s poetry with particular attention to her passion for gardening and her vivid reflections on renewal, resilience, and transformation.

Only about ten of Emily Dickinson’s poems were published during her lifetime and of those, all were published anonymously and likely she never gave consent for the publication. Therefore, in her time Emily was known principally by her family and friends as a prolific gardener! Emily grew all types of flowers, plants, and vegetables within her outdoor gardens and her indoor conservatory (greenhouse) she had attached to her home. Emily found great solace in her garden… it being her sole retreat throughout life. The flowers became the backdrop of her life and the creatures that lived within them became her best friends. Even as she stopped attending church, her garden became her place of worship. “Some keep the Sabbath going to Church — I keep it, staying at Home—” Emily used the events that transcribed in her garden to explain the experience of human life. Nearly all of her poems are based on her experiences in the garden from one aspect or another. The Secret of the Crocus takes you inside Emily’s garden to witness the splendor of life, to feel the sting of death, and to understand the meaning of existence itself.