From The Editor

This winter was particularly difficult. My body knew it was on its way before I did, and soon I felt the despondence of short days, frigid hands and the natural world at rest.

In January, I visited Calhoun Flower Farms to see what farmers do when their land looks dead. I quickly learned the work never ends, and reframed winter as a time of well-earned rest and preparation instead of a cold, useless slumber.

It brought me enough brightness to round out the coldest months and head into spring with a relit internal flame.

In 1911, Frances Hodgson Burnett wrote “The Secret Garden,” an approachable opus about grief, transformation and love of self and the earth. It instilled in me a lifelong desire to find an old, overgrown garden whose door was concealed by overgrown ivy.

While compiling the spring 2023 issue, I re-read “The Secret Garden,” tapping into that same longing for life, earth and a place to grow. I watched the perfect 1997 movie adaptation by Agnieszka Holland. Visiting Calhoun Flower Farms felt like finding a secret garden.

As we started production on the magazine, I got even more excited for springtime. By the time this issue is published, I’ll be wandering the warm, blooming region once more.

In this issue you will learn about the best propagation practices, how to choose the best cuts of meat, what it takes to be a flower farmer and more.

You’ll also hear from artists, authors, retirees, kombucha brewers and others who have been gracious enough to share their stories with El Paso Inc.

“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden,” Burnett wrote.

I hope you take more than a moment to see your whole world – your friends and family, work, hobbies, passions and even dislikes – as a garden that requires hard work and nurturing that will reward you with color and life.

The plants and flowers are reveling in their long-awaited springtime and will continue to do so whether you notice or not. What’s stopping you from doing the same?