“Let me live in my house by the side of the road

And be a friend to man.”

~ Sam Walter Foss

Raspberry peonies spill over in the garden, along spicy-scented garden pinks with bees singing in rose blossoms.

A chickadee keeps busy feeding babies, and River Dog sprawls happy and lazy in the sun, enjoying freshly-mowed grass. As ever, I do the work and he supervises (dogs really are smarter than us).

Banjo the pond frog lost his mate last month: I made a little frog memorial in the horsetail plant in the pond, and before I knew it, a new bullfrog showed up one fine morning: Banjo on one rock, and the new guy on another. The handsome fellow’s been named “Knee Deep.”

When I stroll by and speak, Banjo holds his ground unfazed, without leaving his stone perch, but Knee Deep is still learning the ropes in his new digs. After a few weeks, he’ll figure out we’re not eating frog legs around here, and he’ll be sitting pretty on his rock when River’s snout comes close or I push the pond net through the water.

I reckon we both just want to live in our house (or pond) by the side of the road and be a friend to critters both great and small. Last week, a couple of little kids walked by with their grandma, stopped and admired the bottle trees — and I told them to come on in the garden to visit the frogs and fish.

I think they enjoyed making new friends at the pond. Knee Deep has entertaining to do.   

• Saluda Welcome Table at Saluda Methodist Church is every Tuesday from 5:30-6:45 p.m.

• Learn about Saluda Community Land Trust by visiting saludaclt.org or calling 828-749-1560. The next “Walk in the Woods” is May 20 to Saluda Nature Park. Meet at Saluda Library at 2 p.m. Sunday. For more information on walks, contact Chuck Hearon at 828-817-0364 or chearon@skyrunner.net.

• Saluda Tail Gate Market is open every Friday, 4:30-6:30 p.m.

• Sing! With The Saluda Community Singers on Tuesdays, from 7-8:30 p.m. at Old St. Matthews Church, 396 Irving St.

• Saluda Living in Place is offering a new service: free blood pressure and diabetes risk screening on the third Tuesday of each month, starting on Tuesday at Saluda United Methodist Church’s Wesley Cottage, 132 Greenville St.

• Donations to help support Saluda Historic Depot can be sent to P.O. Box 990, Saluda, NC 28773 or HistoricSaluda.org website. Saluda Train Tales are held the third Friday each month April-October. The next Train Tales feature Saluda native Clark Thompson on Friday, May 18, 7 p.m.

• The 15th annual Saluda Arts Festival is May 19 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Dancer’s Extension will have their seventh annual spring concert at Saluda School’s auditorium at 11 a.m.

• Saluda Garden Club meets at 10 a.m. May 21 at Saluda Library parking lot for trip to Bullington Gardens.

• It’s not too late to purchase an engraved brick paver to support building public restrooms at Pace Park on Main Street. Contact Catherine Ross at 828-749-3534 or carnc@charter.net for information, or visit city hall for a form.

• Coon Dog Day is July 7.

• Happy May Birthday to Amy Copeland, Corinne Gerwe, Chris Anderson, Mark Jackson, Cary Pace, Lisa Hipp, Trevor Young, Jemme Latell, Paul Marion, Jesse Thomas, Margaret Sease, Elizabeth Baldwin, Chad Baldwin, Lynn Cass, Thelma Jones, Betsy Burdett and Melia Bradley.  Please add your names to the list.

Feel free to contact me at bbardos@gmail.com, 828-749-1153, or visit bonniebardosart.com.