Spring is on its way

The UK is bathed in warm sunshine today. Hopefully, this means Spring is on its way.

Bells, bursting into stars

Delicate pink bells, bursting into stars. Lush green spikes, triumphant.

My hyacinths have opened: come on, spring!

Happy Easter, everyone!

Flickr photo credits:
1. Happy Easter, 2. I hope your Easter was filled with beautiful surprises!, 3. Chick, 

4. Easter, 5. Easter Flare, 6. daffodil crying, 7. Crocus, 8. 20110422 #02, 9. Lamb

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Coast

The English seaside in March. Note the grey skies.

But, of course, complete with all necessary elements of childhood seaside holiday nostalgia:

And some rather lovely things too:

Yes, I've been experimenting with Picnik - I'll calm down now, promise!

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Blossom and Scent

Bright blue sunshiny skies, and the plum tree is an explosion of blossom and delicate scent.

Doesn't it just make you think of Anne Shirley, "all spirit, fire and dew" and her "White Way of Delight"?

Nostalgic indulgence moment:

Anne of Green Gables, by L.M.Montgomery - Chapter Two 'Mr. Matthew Cuthbert is Surprised'

She came out of her reverie with a deep sigh and looked at him with the dreamy gaze of a soul that had been wandering afar, star-led.
"Oh, Mr. Cuthbert," she whispered, "that place we came through—that white place—what was it?"
"Well now, you must mean the Avenue," said Matthew after a few moments' profound reflection. "It is a kind of pretty place."
"Pretty? Oh, PRETTY doesn't seem the right word to use. Nor beautiful, either. They don't go far enough. Oh, it was wonderful—wonderful. It's the first thing I ever saw that couldn't be improved upon by imagination. It just satisfies me here"—she put one hand on her breast—"it made a queer funny ache and yet it was a pleasant ache. Did you ever have an ache like that, Mr. Cuthbert?"
"Well now, I just can't recollect that I ever had."
"I have it lots of time—whenever I see anything royally beautiful. But they shouldn't call that lovely place the Avenue. There is no meaning in a name like that. They should call it—let me see—the White Way of Delight. Isn't that a nice imaginative name?

I adored this book as a child: even now, something about the power of the imagination and the joy of living sticks with me still.

You can read it in HTML or Kindle format on Project Gutenberg.

Happy days!

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Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote

Pinch, punch, first of the month…

Well, as the poet says, this month is all about sap rising and Spring springing:

Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote

The droghte of Marche hath perced to the roote,

And bathed every veyne in swich licour,

Of which vertu engendred is the flour

But today's theme seems to be tend more to biting gale force winds, so perhaps a little T.S.Eliot would be more apposite instead?

April is the cruellest month, breeding      

Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing             

Memory and desire, stirring         

Dull roots with spring rain.          

Even so, talking of stirring dull roots, the plum tree in the garden is covered in dainty pale pink blossom. Ephemeral, perfect only in the moment of falling, as the Japanese see it, but beautiful and spring-like nonetheless. And therefore worthy of celebration!

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Sakura

1. sakura #4, 2. Sakura, 3. Sakura 2008, 4. Rolleiflex 4.0 fw

Can you tell it's almost Spring and I'm nostalgic for Japan? I'd love to go on a hanami picnic this weekend!

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Is it Spring yet?

It smells different outside this morning, there's a warmth in the air that has been missing these past months, and a joyous sense of sap rising.

Bright sunshine flooding through the bay window and outside in the planters, tender fronds are pushing up, promising narcissi and snowdrops.

Pancakes to celebrate, I think, and it is the boy's 31st birthday after all.

Tempted to hibernate ...

Tempted to hibernate ... this is purely to cheer myself up!