Shifting into mid-spring--so many flowers, and finally getting the winter tires off

 

I've taken to using the side entrance of our home, the one that is beside the trash barrels and that opens directly onto the driveway. Not because I'm lazy or need a shortcut, but because I hate to disturb the birds. We have not taken in the feeders (yeah, I know, and yeah...) because we are enjoying the visitors. Soon, the lilac hedge will be fully in bloom, too-- then, I'll be avoiding bees. It's huge this year: another benefit of a mild winter. The crabapple is blooming immensely. There's really no other word for it; I've never seen such a sight, a full cloud of magenta. It looks puffy and almost imposing--I love it. 

I'm pretty sure I'm exhausting all of the adjectives I can think of this morning. This year, the flowering trees and shrubs are putting on a display that defies sour moods. I'm glad. I need the reassurance that the natural world will persist. 

Next week, I hope that the garden boxes will be renewed; G is checking on prices for all new soil. No more fooling around with the cheap crap I bought, then had to amend. The gardens have been sad for a couple of years-- low yield, lots of bugs, and weeds galore. Some of that is due to weather, some due to not clearing clippings after mowings, but truly, the only bumper crop I've gotten is weeds. So, we start fresh: cleaned boxes, new soil, new bees in residence. I won't plant too much, just kitchen garden types of plantings, but it'll be nice. Then, I'll put out the new path lights and a few other garden/yard ornaments (sun dial, for ex.), and dig out the deck umbrella. Soon enough, it will be time to put up the pool. We usually do that around Father's Day. I might agitate to have it up a little sooner this year; we'll see.

I know it's a lot of busy work, this shifting of seasonal-living rhythms, but I love to be outdoors. I'm not a hiker or anything like that, and I didn't play sports, but I truly adore sitting on the deck with a book, or lounging in the pool with a baseball game on the radio, or wandering between the garden boxes admiring the small harvest to come. I'm destined to have a quiet life; I have to embrace that and make it my own little jewel-box.

Today, though, I will finally get the winter tires off. I'm looking forward to it.

Have a good day,

C