Love and Flowers

People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us.

Iris Murdoch

White London Phalaenopsis Orchid

Creeping-Oxeye

A little fly enjoying the Creeping-oxeye

Dwarf Morning Glory

Buttercup along the boardwalk

Great Bougainvillea against white stucco

I picked

flowers - silky

white, bright yellow

deep pink, pale blue - a few

flowers within flowers - and all

for you.

I am so glad you are here. It helps me realize how beautiful my world is.

Ranier Maria Rilke

These flowers are my Valentine’s Day gift to you. I hope your week was full of love.

I am humbled and grateful that you spend a few minutes every week to read this little blog. Thank you.

Last Dance of Spring

And since all this loveliness can not be Heaven, I know in my heart it is June.

Abba Louisa Goold Woolson

These little gifts of spring

green leaf and flower gold

Purple spikes and tall grass

I often pass -

until today

when my feet were slow,

and white blossoms

filled my quiet heart

with the grace of a season;

departing.

What an unusual spring we had. Fires in the north making the skies hazy and defusing the sunlight, very little rain, a mix of really hot and surprisingly cold days, and, at least where I live, an unusual abundance of wildlife.

I’ve had a little running injury this spring (now nearly healed) that slowed me down a bit and, in a way, I’m grateful. It gave me a chance to go on longer walks with my camera and take closeups of flowering and budding things. Even with the drier conditions, spring did not disappoint. I was especially drawn to the wild growing things, like the vine twisting over the road at the beginning of this post, the tall grass flowering in an empty lot, or the black-eyed susan and daisy, growing by the guardrails. I think I love them for their tenacity; their beauty rising even in unfavorable conditions.

I hope you had a wonderful week and had a chance to mark the summer solstice in some way on Wednesday, even if just in an acknowledgement that it happened. As I’m writing this, I just realized that there are a couple of you that actually are on the other side of the planet, heading into winter. Either way, seasons are changing. I’m happy you’re here with me! Thank you for your time and attention.

See you next week!