March 2011

winter kitchen

….I wanted to get in one last wintry picture, as Spring is definitely on the March here, with daffodils blooming and trees budding and the temperatures mellowing. I have loved the view out of the windows this winter when I relaxed upon the kitchen sofa-all twisty grey branches against the pale blue skies…with the afternoon light gilding wood and pottery and fabric.
But it is time to let go of all that I love about Winter, and when I return, you will find flowers blossoming here and other Spring-like things….also the lamp-lit evening that surprised us when the power went out just as I was starting to prepare supper last night. I spent my birthday eve sleeping on the floor next to my mom’s bed, ready with the lantern to escort her to the bathroom in the wee hours or offer reassurance as the room got colder or the light refused to turn on. And I admit to worrying a bit that my birthday get-away might be thwarted, but an hour ago the power came back on, and after I post this and pack, my deario and I shall be on our way to our nation’s capitol…to spend a few days with dear friends, seeing sights, going out to a movie, just talking and being together.
It should be heavenly.
I look forward to sharing it all when I return, and send you fond good wishes in the meantime.

little lamb

I first read Edith Holden’s entry for the 24th of February on the 24th….but must have just skimmed it without really taking it in. When I read it again just before I turned the page to March, I was back in the longing place I used to be so often as a young woman…the longing to have lived in an earlier time, a slower time, a quieter time (except when one of the then-new automobiles might have passed by!), a time when a thoughtful farmer might bring you a lamb to hold after you have just picked armfuls of his flowers….

Edith’s ride on that day seems the perfection of this time of year….yes, even down to the seven-mile ride in the sleet and snow. Imagine how good the eventual dry clothes and hot tea and scones would be…

Oh! What I would give right now for a little dark-faced lamb to hold in my arms as it nuzzles my face…my bicycle leaning up against a stone wall, it’s basket full of snowdrops…