Thank You, Spring

Solomon's Seal, 2020 Photo by ERSwett

A simple
please & thank
you. A call for spring
and gratitude when it finally
arrives. That's how my
week has been.
A simple
call...

The shade garden on a cloudy day. Solomon's Seal, Bleeding Heart, Forget-Me-Not & Sweet Woodruff Photo by ERSwett

Please.
And a response.
Thank ​you. There's not
a lot more a gal
can say.

Leaves or Fronds? What does one call these elegant green shapes? Photo by ERSwett

Still feeling
overwhelmed by
the reality of our 'new 
normal,' but finding solace
outside, with camera,
texture & color.

Bloodroot, Sweet Woodruff, Forget-Me-Nots and Hostas emerging Photo by ERSwett

And as
happens, when
I frame leaves or flowers,
stories emerge. Today blankets of
Sweet Woodruff reveal the
truth about perennials,
how they sleep,
creep, then
​leap. 

Cool bird watches, ready for the violet creeping phlox to bloom. Photo by ERSwett

Yesterday,
the story was about
people - - crowds at the annual
Yard Sale where I purchased this dignified
bird, my friend Larry, who gave me these violets,
and Elmer, from whom we purchased
these River Birch trees over a 
​decade ago.

Larry's Violets & Elmer's River Birch Photo by ERSwett

And then
there's dandelions,
showing up in random places,
a pesky weed for some, but a cheerful
harbinger of health for others.
It's all about the narrative
we choose.

Proud Dandelion, 2020 Photo by ERSwett

The
dandelion
at the foot of
a tree, shaded by
daffodils feels different
from the dandelion blowing
in the wind on a grassy 
hillside at the
​landfill.

Landfill Landscape May 2020 Photo by ERSwett

And the
hawk soaring
above that same landfill
inspires a different kind of reverence
than do robins digging
in my yard.

Hawk at the Lebanon Landfill, May 2020 Photo by ERSwett

I love
how even when
alone in the garden or on a
hillside in an industrial part of town, I
am with others, part of a narrative that transcends
the weather on a single day or my state
of mind in a given
moment.

Daffodils & Largeflower Bellwort Photo by ERSwett

Please.
May I find hope
in a time of trouble. Thank 
you for the gifts that emerge. Forget
me not. The world is sweet, even though it
can be hard to focus & things feel
blurry when people & plants
try to share space. It's
possible, ​though.
So much is
​possible.

Forget-Me-Not & Sweet Woodruff Photo by ERSwett