By Kathryn Willis
Published in the March 2015 edition of Front Porch Fredericksburg Magazine
For Lynda Baer, the aha moment occurred sometime in the ‘80s. Walking in the rose garden at Chatham, amidst massive boxwoods and arching trellises full of cascading blooms, she found that her hands were clasped behind her back, as she progressed from blossom to blossom, bending to experience that sweet summer scent.
She realized that the experience had transported her inner child back to the formal gardens at her grandmother’s house. “Grandmother allowed us to walk the paths only if our hands were clasped behind our backs,” she recalled. “At that moment, I connected in a personal way with Chatham.”