{"id":18510,"date":"2020-12-09T07:11:54","date_gmt":"2020-12-09T15:11:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mixhart.ca\/blog\/?p=18510"},"modified":"2020-12-16T11:02:35","modified_gmt":"2020-12-16T19:02:35","slug":"a-rose-garden-chapter-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/a-rose-garden-chapter-3\/","title":{"rendered":"A Rose Garden Chapter 3"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/h2>\n

A Rose Garden<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Chapter 3<\/strong><\/h4>\n

May<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was peaceful on the mountain before the neighbourhood woke. A California quail patriarch called, \u201cChi-ca-go,\u201d from the fence post, as his grown family searched the yard for breakfast. Inside the maple tree, a golden finch chirped to the scarlet finch that sat in the lavender bush. Elsa had been forced to wake early, so Hugo could fit the rose garden into his inflexible schedule. As always, the morning was intoxicating in its natural beauty and Elsa was once again determined to force herself out of bed by six for the rest of the spring and summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the last one,\u201d Hugo said. He seemed irritated, rushed, as though the garden was keeping him from something.<\/p>\n

Elsa shoved in the brick and placed the level on top. \u201cIt\u2019s good,\u201d she said. She stood up and wiped her soil stained kneecaps. \u201cI like it!\u201d Elsa said as she admired the long, distressed bricks. \u201cIt really adds elegance to the front yard, don\u2019t you think?\u201d Grass had long ago jumped the plastic lawn barrier. The newly placed bricks protected a garden of Kentucky Bluegrass. Its long, uncut stocks hid the dead and dying rosebushes\u2014all that remained of the original rose garden\u2019s past splendour.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, it does.\u201d Hugo\u2019s agreement resonated like a sigh of relief.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll we have to do is pull out all the grass and then I can replant this baby,\u201d Elsa knelt to inspect the newly purchased Abraham Darby rose bush\u2014waiting in its pot, on the browned lawn, to be planted. \u201cWe should be able to smell the roses in our bedroom once it blooms.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t. I\u2019m going to head out to the field. I need to check on the undergrowth before the spring melt floods the creek and cuts off access. They still haven\u2019t replaced the bridge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy? No one\u2019s doing research. The labs are closed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d Hugo said. His voice was loud and higher-pitched than usual.<\/p>\n

\u201cShhh, talk quietly. The neighbourhood\u2019s still asleep. No one gets up this early except you.\u201d When he got like this, acting as though his work held the secrets of the universe, Elsa was instantly repelled by his arrogance, and suddenly, she wanted him to leave\u2014work or no work\u2014just to be rid of him for the day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI missed my run so I could help you finish the bricks. I told you I was going to go out in the field today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, you said, this week sometime. You didn\u2019t say today, specifically.\u201d In truth, she couldn\u2019t remember what he\u2019d told her. She tuned out when he started to natter on about his work. In the beginning, she had listened to his ramblings, believing in the better future that his work would help build. Hugo\u2019s research, on ungulate populations, was instrumental in lobbying the government to take a break from aerial spraying\u2014 in creating designer forests, they\u2019d eradicated biodiversity, and all food sources for the herbivores. The forests had been sprayed with pesticides and herbicides\u2014glyphosate and a few other chemicals\u2014for nearly a decade, destroying the understory, and with it, all deciduous trees and plants, to ensure a forest of lodgepole pine\u2014a logging industry favourite. You couldn\u2019t call them forests anymore, they were monoculture tree plantations.<\/p>\n

Although Hugo\u2019s work gave much to the Earth, it took far more than Elsa was willing to accept.<\/p>\n

Hugo left Elsa in the garden, along with the garden tools.<\/p>\n

The tools were useless. The grass would not budge\u2014the roots too long to pull out. She didn\u2019t have the bulk and brute strength to permeate the clay beneath the thin top layer of soil. She\u2019d have to dig up the entire bed\u2014turn the soil upside down and shake the grass roots loose. The car doors beeped open. As much as she didn\u2019t want Hugo to return to the forest, she was curious to know what he\u2019d discover in \u201cthe field,\u201d if\u00a0 he\u2019d find evidence of biodiversity returning. It was the second spring without aerial toxins.<\/p>\n

Elsa met Hugo in the driveway. \u201cI want to go with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you ready? I have to go now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t. I have a meeting with a student in two hours\u2026you could take Oscar. He needs a break from worrying about COIVD. It would be so good for him to spend the day in nature with his dad.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere is he, is he ready?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s in bed. You know he\u2019s never up before ten since quarantine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t wait for anyone. I won\u2019t have much time in the forest. I have to leave early, before the last ferry crossing. They have shortened hours since COVID\u2014I\u2019ll take him next time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWill you be home for supper? It\u2019s your night to cook.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCould you pick up takeout tonight? I won\u2019t be back until 6:30 at the earliest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat will you eat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI packed a lunch\u2014and I can pick up something in Trout Creek if I need anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you have bear spray?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah.\u201d He jumped in the car. She pantomimed rolling down the window\u2014the old fashioned way, with a handle. Hugo pressed the window button and unrolled it halfway.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you bring a mask? Wear a mask on the ferry and if you go into Trout Creek.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not allowed out of the car on the ferry but I\u2019ve got a mask. I\u2019ll be fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Elsa harnessed Leroy and headed out the back gate and up the trail, towards Rosa. She spotted a doe up ahead on a hill above the trail. She probably had a fawn hiding in the grass somewhere. Elsa left the path, taking the long route, through dense bush, around the side of the mountain. The deer stepped to the edge of the trail and watched Elsa and Leroy walking below. Elsa walked through the forest all year long, through the changing seasons, and the deer ignored her and Leroy\u2014she\u2019d even stumbled into the middle of a large herd on occasion, during dark winter morning walks. Spring was different\u2014a post-natal doe will not tolerate a dog. Elsa walked quickly through the Saskatoon berry and Oregon grape bushes that covered the slopes. The deer trotted parallel to her on the trail above, keeping pace with them, her head held high and alert. The slope turned into a craggy rock escarpment ahead of Leroy. The deer had also come to the end of the trail above. There was nowhere for any of them to go but down, along the side of the rock, further into the forest. Elsa ran, pulling Leroy, who initially seemed confused as to why they were suddenly running down the mountain. The deer crashed through the bushes, charging after them. Elsa scanned the ground for loose rocks or large branches to use as weapons\u2014she was too far to run home. She had to get to Rosa. The breadth of the tree would protect her from flailing hooves. She sprinted beneath the rock precipice until she reached the other side of the mountain and then she climbed straight up, grabbing roots and branches when it became steep. She reached the ancient ponderosa and stopped. There was no sign of the deer. Elsa braced herself against the side of the tree. She\u2019d never run so hard in her life. She felt like throwing up. She collapsed beneath Rosa. Leroy licked her face nervously as she pulled a thermos of iced tea from her shoulder pack. She was shaking too hard to unscrew the lid. She leaned back on the bark, to catch her breath. The tree stayed with her or she stayed with the tree\u2014she wasn\u2019t sure which one it was until she felt that she was home.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Flora and Wyatt sat in the loungers on the front balcony, drinking coffee. Flora was wearing cut-offs and a bikini top. Wyatt was bare-chested and wearing\u2014what looked like\u2014Flora\u2019s yoga pants.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny exams today?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not until next Tuesday, then that\u2019s it, I\u2019m done!\u201d Flora said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWyatt, you\u2019re finished exams, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYup.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen will you find out if the store will have work for you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe already did. They\u2019re staying closed\u2014indefinitely,\u201d Flora interrupted.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh no. Are they closing down?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. Online ordering is going okay\u2014they\u2019re selling a record amount of puzzles,\u201d Wyatt said.<\/p>\n

On closer inspection, Elsa saw that they were definitely Flora\u2019s yoga pants. \u201cAre those Flora\u2019s pants?\u201d Elsa asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d Wyatt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s doing laundry\u2014what happened to Leroy? He looks dead,\u201d Flora said. Leroy lay on his side, flat against the balcony floor, eyes closed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were chased by a psychotic mother deer and nearly killed\u2014can you and Wyatt finish weeding the rose garden? All I need you to do is pull out the grass. It won\u2019t take you long, half an hour max with the two of you working on it.\u201d She left the silent two-some before they had a chance to think up a reason why they couldn\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Elsa flopped on the master bed, then sat up and untied her hiking shoes. She glanced at\u00a0the clock and flopped down again. The post adrenalin exhaustion from the deer chase left her too depleted to move. Twenty-five minutes until the online session with her student started. She dreaded it. The girl\u2019s mother hovered just off-camera as the girl sat like a silent zombie. Elsa closed her eyes and listened to the clang of metal against brick in the garden below.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere\u2019s the garden? This is nothing but grass,\u201d Wyatt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cShut-up\u2014just dig,\u201d Flora said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is gonna take a while\u2014can\u2019t we just spray it with Roundup and be done?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRoundup? Are you insane?\u201d<\/p>\n

Wyatt mumbled something. Flora answered in a hushed voice. Elsa sat upright, trying to hear what was said. \u201cGlyphosate is what caused my dad\u2019s Parkinson\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry\u2014really?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2014keep digging.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike\u2014how\u2019d that happen?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was in the forest doing fieldwork. A helicopter flew over and dumped herbicide near where he was working. It drifted into his forest. He said the smell was so bad, he instantly puked.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elsa remembered the night. Hugo arrived home covered in a bright red rash, and what appeared to be a violent gastrointestinal bug.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe got Parkinson\u2019s that fast?\u201d Wyatt asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo\u2014that happened when I was in grade six, I think. He was diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s two years ago\u2014I was grade eleven.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, is he cured now? He seems healthy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo. There is no cure. He manages it\u2014takes pills every day to keep it under control\u2014kind of like someone who has diabetes. So far he hasn’t have any physical symptoms. I\u2019m hoping he never will.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey think it was the Roundup that caused it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGlyphosate. Yeah\u2014there\u2019s nothing else it could be. My dad never smoked, he barely drinks\u2026he\u2019s been doing CrossFit since it was invented.\u201d<\/p>\n

The conversation shocked Elsa awake with a shot of residual adrenalin. It was not something she and Hugo discussed with the children, not since the initial diagnosis. Listening to Flora describe her father\u2019s disease with such knowledge and calmness, gave Elsa hope that maybe the kids were okay and that perhaps, her decision\u2014for herself and Hugo to tell the children an optimistic truth\u2014was the right thing to do in a situation that had nothing right about it.<\/p>\n

Oscar knocked softly on her bedroom door.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome in\u2014good morning\u2014how\u2019s my baby boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Oscar was dressed and his hair was brushed. \u201cCan I hang out with my friends today?\u201d<\/p>\n

Elsa\u2019s mind was still focused on the conversation in the rose garden. She smiled vacantly\u00a0as she tried to refocus her attention on the boy in her bedroom. \u201cDid you finish your schoolwork?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything except Tech Ed. But I don\u2019t have to hand it in until June\u2014can I hang out at Tyler\u2019s?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn his backyard?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know\u2014probably not. Everyone\u2019s there already. They\u2019re playing\u2026video games.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oscar\u2019s pause alerted Elsa that they were probably playing a violent video game that she forbid him to play. \u201cWhere are they playing video games, inside Tyler\u2019s house?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn his family room. It\u2019s in the basement\u2014I can sit on the floor, six feet away from everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy aren\u2019t they social distancing?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t have to because they don\u2019t have a vulnerable person living with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is wrong with them? I blame their parents\u2014they are<\/em> vulnerable. Look at your friend Will, he has horrible asthma\u2014COVID would be really hard on him. And what about Tyler\u2019s mom? She has diabetes. It\u2019s not a given she\u2019d survive COVID.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, can I go?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to follow the government rules. They should be following the government rules.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not fair. My friends hang out all of the time. I\u2019m the only one who can never go\u00a0anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can go outside with them\u2014talk to them online\u2014play games with them online.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one goes online anymore. I\u2019m the only one. They won\u2019t even talk to me online anymore. They\u2019re always hanging out with each other, doing fun things.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you try to talk to them online?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I always do and they won\u2019t even answer me. I\u2019m left out of everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou went biking with them\u2026.why can\u2019t they hang out outside?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t want to go outside. They said they want to do indoor stuff today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what\u2019s up with them. But your friends love you. I know they like hanging\u00a0out with you\u2014what about James?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery day I ask him if he wants to do something but he never gets back to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re drips\u2014I\u2019m not impressed with the selfish little shits.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMom! They\u2019re my friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry. You\u2019re right. They\u2019re kids. I\u2019m just mad at their parents for being so bloody\u00a0narcissistic and not quarantining. It\u2019s not fair for the people who are following the government rules. It punishes the kids whose families are following the rules.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t my friends be in our bubble?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t live with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy does Wyatt get to live with us?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause Flora can\u2019t be near him unless he\u2019s in our bubble.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to be in our bubble anymore if my friends can\u2019t be in it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want you to be able to hang out with your friends. But what am I supposed to do? Your dad cannot get COVID.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan I go if I wear a mask?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot if you\u2019re inside an enclosed space. Your dad has Parkinson\u2019s for god sake!<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t bring COVID home. It could kill him!\u201d<\/p>\n

Oscar\u2019s head slumped forward. She\u2019d said too much. He buried his head in his crossed arms and his shoulders shook. Elsa bounded from the bed to hold him, expecting him to push her away but he didn\u2019t. \u201cI\u2019m sorry I yelled. Your points are valid. I\u2019m sorry I shot them down. I\u2019m in a bad mood. I didn\u2019t get much sleep last night.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

🌹<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hugo tiptoed into the bedroom, stripped off his clothes and crawled into bed beside Elsa. It was a notable occasion, the first night in recent memory that she\u2019d beaten him into bed. She pretended to be asleep, too tired to conjure up the anger needed to address him. His breathing slowed and deepened. He was already asleep.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast ferry, my ass,\u201d Elsa said. Hugo\u2019s breathing remained slow and steady. \u201cWhere have you been?\u201d she said loudly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey moved to summer ferry hours. I stayed as long as the sun would allow me,\u201d Hugo said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou couldn\u2019t answer your fucking phone?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I couldn\u2019t. I was out of cell service until the ferry and then my battery died.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cConvenient.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hugo rolled over, his back forming a wall between them. She was too tired to care anymore; though, she mustered up the energy to place a spare pillow firmly between them, strengthening the wall.<\/p>\n

Parkinson\u2019s wasn\u2019t sexy. No one talked about that. The young lovers had suffered a blow that shook the relationship to its beginnings. Parkinson\u2019s had aged their souls and frozen the love affair. They were holding back from emerging as old lovers, facing the inevitability of disease and death. It was a premature reckoning that neither was ready for.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a9Mix Hart 2020<\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Rose Garden Chapter 3 May It was peaceful on the mountain before the neighbourhood woke. A California quail patriarch called, \u201cChi-ca-go,\u201d from the fence post, as his grown family searched the yard for breakfast. Inside the maple tree, a … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18490,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"kt_blocks_editor_width":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3699],"tags":[3725,3723,3720,3718,3719,3717,3338,3715,3716,3339,3721,3722,3727,3726,3728,3724,2714,3710,3517,1904,3730,3712,3714,3,3729,3709,3370,3713,3711,349],"class_list":["post-18510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-narrative","tag-amreading","tag-author","tag-bibliophile","tag-book","tag-bookish","tag-booklover","tag-booknerd","tag-books","tag-bookworm","tag-drama","tag-familylife","tag-literature","tag-modernlife","tag-storyteller","tag-westcoastlife","tag-writer","tag-canadian-author","tag-covid-living","tag-family","tag-family-life","tag-family-saga","tag-fiction","tag-literary-serial","tag-mix-hart","tag-new-book","tag-novelette","tag-reading","tag-short-story","tag-surviving-covid","tag-writing"],"aioseo_notices":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":3699,"label":"Narrative"}],"post_tag":[{"value":3725,"label":"#amreading"},{"value":3723,"label":"#author"},{"value":3720,"label":"#bibliophile"},{"value":3718,"label":"#book"},{"value":3719,"label":"#bookish"},{"value":3717,"label":"#booklover"},{"value":3338,"label":"#booknerd"},{"value":3715,"label":"#books"},{"value":3716,"label":"#bookworm"},{"value":3339,"label":"#drama"},{"value":3721,"label":"#familylife"},{"value":3722,"label":"#literature"},{"value":3727,"label":"#ModernLife"},{"value":3726,"label":"#storyteller"},{"value":3728,"label":"#WestCoastLife"},{"value":3724,"label":"#writer"},{"value":2714,"label":"Canadian author"},{"value":3710,"label":"Covid Living"},{"value":3517,"label":"Family"},{"value":1904,"label":"family life"},{"value":3730,"label":"family saga"},{"value":3712,"label":"Fiction"},{"value":3714,"label":"Literary Serial"},{"value":3,"label":"Mix Hart"},{"value":3729,"label":"new book"},{"value":3709,"label":"novelette"},{"value":3370,"label":"reading"},{"value":3713,"label":"Short Story"},{"value":3711,"label":"Surviving Covid"},{"value":349,"label":"writing"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/CINZEl.jpg",889,889,false],"author_info":{"display_name":"mixhart","author_link":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/author\/mixhart\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":3699,"name":"Narrative","slug":"narrative","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3746,"taxonomy":"category","description":"Engaging narratives, poetry, short stories, essays, novelettes, novella's and novels by MIx Hart ","parent":0,"count":16,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":3699,"category_count":16,"category_description":"Engaging narratives, poetry, short stories, essays, novelettes, novella's and novels by MIx Hart ","cat_name":"Narrative","category_nicename":"narrative","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":3725,"name":"#amreading","slug":"amreading","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3772,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3723,"name":"#author","slug":"author","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3770,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3720,"name":"#bibliophile","slug":"bibliophile","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3767,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3718,"name":"#book","slug":"book","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3765,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3719,"name":"#bookish","slug":"bookish","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3766,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3717,"name":"#booklover","slug":"booklover","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3764,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3338,"name":"#booknerd","slug":"booknerd","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3385,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3715,"name":"#books","slug":"books","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3762,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3716,"name":"#bookworm","slug":"bookworm","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3763,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3339,"name":"#drama","slug":"drama","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3386,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":8,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3721,"name":"#familylife","slug":"familylife","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3768,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3722,"name":"#literature","slug":"literature","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3769,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3727,"name":"#ModernLife","slug":"modernlife","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3774,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3726,"name":"#storyteller","slug":"storyteller","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3773,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3728,"name":"#WestCoastLife","slug":"westcoastlife","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3775,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3724,"name":"#writer","slug":"writer","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3771,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":2714,"name":"Canadian author","slug":"canadian-author","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":2774,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":9,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3710,"name":"Covid Living","slug":"covid-living","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3757,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3517,"name":"Family","slug":"family","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3564,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":9,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":1904,"name":"family life","slug":"family-life","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1959,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":25,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3730,"name":"family saga","slug":"family-saga","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3777,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":4,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3712,"name":"Fiction","slug":"fiction","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3759,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3714,"name":"Literary Serial","slug":"literary-serial","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3761,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3,"name":"Mix Hart","slug":"mix-hart","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":14,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3729,"name":"new book","slug":"new-book","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3776,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":4,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3709,"name":"novelette","slug":"novelette","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3756,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3370,"name":"reading","slug":"reading","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3417,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3713,"name":"Short Story","slug":"short-story","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3760,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":3711,"name":"Surviving Covid","slug":"surviving-covid","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3758,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":349,"name":"writing","slug":"writing","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1617,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":13,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18510"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18510\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18529,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18510\/revisions\/18529"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.mixhart.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}