Like the flip of a switch, spring blew into the Twin Cities this past week. Last Monday, May 1st, brought us snow flurries in abundance – it looked and felt more like November than May. But as the week wore on, the temperatures rebounded, the sun appeared, and the leaves started opening. The tulips and daffodils became riots of color, the crabapple trees were awash in pinks and whites, and the once-barren, brown grass became green again. This weekend found people outside – gardening, walking, running, biking, having parties on their patios and decks – anything to soak up the warmth and the return of spring.
spring
Spring and Easter
Spring and Easter – all at the same time. Bright colors, light colors, the colors of spring. This flowering crabapple bonsai seemed to sum up the season and the day. Wishing you the bright colors and warmth and joy of spring and Easter!
Tulip time!
It’s tulip time – perhaps in the temperate Skagit Valley of Washington, or in the states to the south of me. But in Minnesota the ground has just thawed and there hasn’t been enough warmth for any bulbs to force through the still cool soil. Yet with the help of a nearby florist, we can enjoy the scents and colors of the spring to come. These tulips have brightened my world every day this past week and given me the promise of spring – perhaps just around the corner.
Hope
Webster’s dictionary defines hope as wanting something to happen or be true. So it is with spring this year. We “hope” for sunshine, warmer temperatures, the bright colors of flowers. We “hope” that the passing days bring longer hours of sunshine. And yet Mother Nature has alternative plans. This week we rode a roller coaster through snow and strong winds, rain, and the promise of warmer air. Through it all we strive to embrace what it is, just as these runners ran through a deserted Como Park having the trails and snow to themselves in this once-again wintry landscape.
A quick fix for winter’s doldrums
We’re languishing still in winter – short days, colder than normal temperatures, gray skies, brown ground. This beautiful splash of purple iris caught my eye at the store last week. Flowers! Color! Spring! – all in one compact bouquet. It was an instant “shot” of what I needed. The promise of spring is still ahead; yes, there will be blue skies, sunshine, the scents of spring, and the colors of flowers – somewhere ahead of the snow expected later today.
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