a first visit

This morning felt like a good time for a first visit to Stoneleigh, a natural garden in Villanova. It's a beautiful property for walking.

I'm glad I saw the sign pointing to the edge of the property where the hare sculpture lives. The sculpture was commissioned in 2002 by John and Chara Haas (the original owners of the property) to depict the Haas family as hares. This is a play on their name since Haas means “hare” in German. It's a delightful sculpture.

The restoration of the sculpture is detailed in the article Hares Under Repair.

Stoneleigh first opened to the public in May of 2018. I hope it stays intact. That is in question right now as the local school district is attempting to take the land by eminent domain. Seizure of land like this feels very wrong to me.

For information and actions to preserve the gardens, jump to Save Stoneleigh!