Spring Blossoms

 

Spring has sprung and even with a certain amount of neglect things still bloom forth in all their glory.  I look around our yard and there is a riot of blooms.  Not a lot of color in these pictures but there is some.  These first blossoms are a product of our neighbors hard work and lightly fill the air with a scent of sweetness as I race by them to or from somewhere.   Jasmine that covers the fence and a sprawling bulb the I'm not sure the name of.  The other ones are from our pear and apple trees repectively.  They are old but oh so productive.      

Weekend Away

This weekend we went on a small getaway up to the Sierra Foothills.  As we were walking on this path Eli stopped and noticed these little trees growing opposite of the large trees.  He stopped in his tracks, "Look at these baby trees.  They came from these trees (large ones on the other side of the path) and they are growing here because people don;t walk on them."  His delight in this discovery made me think of an essay by Barbara Kingsolver.  I am reading her book of essays titled High Tide in Tucson.  This essay is called, "The Memory Place".  She is writing about exploring the country in Kentucky as a child.  Eli's gasp and stop in his tracks made me think of this part.  "I can't imagine that any discovery I ever make, in the rest of my life, will give me the same electric thrill I felt when I first found little righteous Jack in his crimson-curtained pulpit poking up from the base of a rotted log."
I love that.  That's what it's all about.

Northern Coast

We drove to the Northern Coast.  Way up and out on the Peninsula.  Out by dairy farms and grazing cows and nursing calves and small deer.  The sun shone brillantly and we stayed until the fog rolled in.  Loving the fresh air and warm sunshine, the roar of the ocean and blowing of the light house horn. 

The next day we found ourselves exploring another part of the coast.  We hiked up through a woodland area and as we came out to the sea we found a sturdy rope swing on a huge eucalyptus tree.  After much urging from the rope swing owners some of us gave it a try.  Seemingly swinging out over the Pacific Ocean.  Lovely.  We continued on to spend the day on a long stretch of beach where we watched the sun change colors and the shadows stretch long and we raced the light heading back out of there. 

Urban Forests

Here is a beautiful spot I have found myself in during work hours two different times lately, which has been great.  I went on a field trip with school and got a day out.  So refreshing and really seems like what the classroom really should be-learning  about ecosystems and what we can do as humans to help maintain them.  Then I found myself there again when that beautiful golden fall light was spreading its way across the landscape.  We had just gotten home and were cozy with snack and the marble track when I forced them all to charge out again.  Much to their dismay.  And of course, once we were there they wanted to explore every tree and trail.  And they didn't want to leave.