Grape Hyacinths

I went outside this morning to pick flowers from my front yard. The grape hyacinths given to me by my mother years ago have spread beyond the flower bed and into the lawn that now needs to be mowed.  Instead of mowing down the tiny purple flowers, I decided to create a small arrangement for my desk.  To bring contrast to my little arrangement, I put in the first lily of the valley of the season. Their bright white flowers make a colorful and aromatic addition to the bouquet.

Spring is my favorite time of the year. After long dark months of winter, the arrival of spring reawakens my senses. Overhead, the skeletal maples and oaks have begun to fill out with miniature leaves. On the ground, the ferns rise up from the soil covering the front yard with curled fiddleheads. The forsythia flowers are peaking this week and soon will drop, covering the ground with a layer of yellow petals.  The morning air is a symphony of bird songs as migrating birds join the chorus of mourning doves and chickadees.

A friend generously offered me her raised vegetable beds to use this summer. I am anxious to dig into the soil, sowing lettuce seeds, planting pepper plants.  But winter refuses to release its grip and I refuse to subject tender young plants to the cruelties of cold and snow. Eventually the battle between winter and spring will end, hopefully in spring’s favor.  Then, dirt will embed beneath my fingernails; my back will ache gloriously from hours bent over in planting and weeding.

In the meantime, I am planning a day trip to the local nature reserves in search of spring wildflowers and mushrooms. Like the short lives of the wildflowers that bloom this time of the year, spring transitions too soon into summer. It’s time to be outside.