Little Boy Fun

As a teenager & into my 20's, I volunteered as a camp counselor through our area church in Maryland. Professionally, I have worked with preschool & early elementary age children as well as adolescents. I have never again had the opportunity to work with older elementary boys as I did in those summer camps, though that is the age which sparked my passion for teaching. I am now blessed to reside with a 10 year old boy & life is sometimes unbearably fun !!!! My son was granted the privilege of lighting firecrackers under supervision, so we regularly test cause & effect on various toys & such. Underwater explosions are particularly fun !

Days of Change

A week ago, I sat on my western, "Holy Rock" high above the lake & watched the forest. Perched at eye level with the branches, I searched for signs of the green veil of spring to begin it's subtle glory. The red maple blossoms were blessedly giving way to burgundy helicopters & days of rain had cleared the air of their pollen. Daffodils, tulips & hyacinths graced our gardens. Soft, gray doves contrasted against richly colored carpets of phlox on terraces all around, while "yellow bells", pears, magnolias & cherries were blooming on full throttle. "Surely, the forest must be beginning to green over", I thought. Despite my earnest searching, there was no sign of the muslin, veil of green as I watched sat that Saturday morning. I gazed across the water, relishing the view which I knew would soon become filtered by the forest.

The following evening my peering eye discovered the tiniest of green tips amid the trees & the oaks began to erupt in flowers on their tips. The silver "V" of the beaver's wake stood out providing me with a thrill I never tire of & the following day, I found myself peering through the misty green of early spring. Day by day ~ even hour by hour, God's artistry can nearly be seen in motion. It is an amazing time of year!

Polyanthas for Jesse & Vic

Zechariah 4:10 asks, "Who has despised the day of small things?"
I believe it is often in the smallest of day-to-day moments that our relationships deepen & our memories are the strongest.

As far back as I can remember I had always been intrigued by Great Britain. While I was still in highschool, I asked my parents if I might spend a semester there in college. They agreed & it would become an experience that would forever impact our lives for the better. I had my choice of living in an apartment with other international students or living with a "British family". I chose the family as I wanted to be fully immersed in their culture. Jesse & Vic were to become my new "parents" & it is with the greatest of love I look back on our time together. I have ever after said, "I have my mom & dad, as well as my Mum & Vic".

In America these flowers are called, "Primrose", but I call them "Polyanthas", as Jesse taught me. When I first arrived for my semester abroad they were nearly the only thing in bloom. I purchased 3 little pots of them this year & they brightened my home in the last of the dark, winter months here. God graced me with literally hundreds of amazing images of these & I randomly chose one for my blog header these past months. Now that it is time to post a new image there, I keep this in a post to remember all the warm moments of memories in their kitchen as I adjusted to a new way of life in my home on the other side of the world.
When I see polyanthas in my kitchen window, I am transported back in time & across the pond. I always lingered after meals to help with the dishes. It seemed the right thing to do & I never wanted our mealtime conversations to end. Vic would wash, I would dry & Jesse would put them away. We regailed each other with stories, & laughed endlessly. I still see the gleam in Vic's eyes, hear the sparkle of Jesse's laughter & feel the warmth as we bonded into a true family.

Sensory Explosion

As closely as I have watched throughout my life, it took years for me to realize the first reds to grace the tips of maple trees are actually tiny flowers. It was in my early 20's, when I was tested for allergies I became aware of them. This also explained why the first hints of spring would leave me bed-ridden for a week. They are such tee-tiny blossoms, yet their pollen can absolutely debilitate me. With knowledge comes power & I have learned to remain functional throughout their lengthy blooming time.

I live & work in close proximity to our area NASCAR track & during race season, we listen to the distant, comforting drone of the track. It is one in which "the Big Boys" often test their cars prior to Cup series, short-track races. One Friday, as I headed home from work, the roar of racing engines overpowered my craving for an afternoon nap. I knew that I would not be able to sleep as the engines would continue to beckon me, so I purposefully drove a tad out of my way to stand right at the fence & watch the boys run. Local drivers were out practicing for our season opener, but it was no less exhilarating than if it had been a Cup driver.

I was able to stand right at the fence & spend my afternoon amid the excitement of the near deafening roar, the wind & the amazing smell of rubber on hot asphalt.
"Gentlemen, start your engines..."

Springtime Treasures

Each February, I fill my home with pots of soil brimming with bulbs. My own patience is nurtured as I eagerly await their magic. This year, I once again chose orchid colored tulips & "blue" hyacinths. Typically, they are in bloom at the same time, but my "blues" are lagging which has allowed me to enjoy the magical fragrance of the tulips. I hadn't realized they had much of any at all, yet how sweet their subtle aroma is! Their scent fills my home as the dozen blossoms reach for the sun & fill my kitchen window.

When they are finished, I will give them a good rest before placing them in my gardens. Each year, I place clusters of around 8 in strategic spots surrounding my home. I am always surprised as forgotten plantings burst forth in new places. Over 10 years of doing so has resulted in many such surprises. I simply cannot keep up with all the places I have buried treasures. All of my daffodils have been gifts from people moving or have been rescued from abandoned properties. I account for many a loved one as their daff-o-down-dillies erupt in my yard each year. My driveway is lined on either side with daffodils I salvaged as a middle-schooler & brought here to SC from my childhood home in MD when my parents moved.

This little grouping lies in my lower yard, where I gaze out over the lake. On my treks down to the water I pause to enjoy God's artistry. Daffodils shout their glory from atop the graves of 2 beloved pets. Soon they will be overtaken by years of collected Easter lilies.... pictures are sure to follow in the next weeks.