Peace

Yesterday was my parent's 39th wedding anniversary and today is, of course, Father's Day.  So this morning we descended upon the family house for chocolate cake (the secret family recipe of course) and general merriment.

After cake, coffee and presents, the glorious spring sunshine beckoned to us and we moved outside.  We sat in a semi circle, basking like lizards under a clear blue sky, quietly chatting as the dogs played and birds fluttered overhead.  I sat there, in the middle of my family, my hand resting on S's leg, eyes closed, sun warm on my face and felt utter peace.  Stress and worry floated away.  In that moment, I felt warm, loved, and oh so very happy.

I hope today brought you a similar moment of truly carefree peacefulness.

My productive garden - part 3

Look at the bounty my garden has produced.  I never get past the excitement of picking something from my garden.  It is always full of herbs, but in summer, a bed not much bigger than my desk also gets planted out with as many vegetables as I can fit in a small space.

However, it has been a bit of a disappointing year to this point.  With all the rain everything grew like crazy, but nothing ripened.  The squash were particularly disappointing as they kept rotting before they got to picking stage.  Likewise the black russian tomatoes had just sat disappointingly green on the vine, not doing a thing. 

But what a difference a week of sunshine can make!  Last night I went out intending to pick the few red cherry tomatoes I could see, only to find hiding beneath their giant leaves a veritable army of squash!  And next to them the tomatoes had suddenly coloured up too!  Even the cherry tomatoes were hiding their glory just waiting for a closer look.  There was so much that I was able to bring a massive container into the office to share with my colleagues.

I feel all proud of the efforts of my little garden!  Just imagine what we could all do if everyone turned over a bit of their garden to growing produce.

A storm in sunshine

This morning I woke to the sound of rain absolutely pelting down on the roof, but was very confused by the sound as the sun was also streaming in through cracks in the blinds. It transpired that I had just been hit by the edge of a thunderstorm and soon the sky was dark and crisscrossed with massive bolts of lightening, but for those few moments I got the wonder that is rain falling through sunshine.

I just adore the combination of weather. The way the raindrops catch the sun turning golden, how much blacker the clouds look against a sunlight hill. There is something about the contrast that makes each of the parts just that little more beautiful.

The storms rolled around for a few hours before clearing to a fresh, blue sky day. The air still smells rich and moist from the rain, but the sun is warm. What a fantastic day!

After the rain

It has rained, boy has it rained. Facebook is full of references to the arc, streets have been flooded, houses inundated. But for the first time in who knows how long, definitely since long before we started paying attention, today the dams are 100% full.

And as if to celebrate, this afternoon the clouds parted and the sun streamed down. All the rain nourished plants glowed luminous green. The flowers lifted their heads which had been weighed with water and beamed colour, the air is warm and humid and so clear and clean.

In the distance bulbous clouds, white and grey still hang, full of promise in the air, but between them, the clear blue sky and the warm afternoon sun showed what a beautiful summer there is to come.

What a sight to behold!

Sun on the roses

This morning I opened my curtains to a beautiful sight. My backyard is full of roses. They were coated with a thick layer of dew from yesterday's rain which had caught the rays of the rising sun. Each leaf, bud, flower and stem was outlined with a glowing silver edge as the dew and sun combined. No jeweller could ever recreate the brilliance of this morning, even with the most sparkly of diamonds and the sight lifted my heart.

It really was a gorgeous morning. Canberra looks stunning at the moment, with rolling green hills, lush gardens and full lakes. It was beautiful and sunny, with everything glowing green and sparkling clean after the rain. There were a few clouds about, but they only served to create a marbled effect of shadows over the mountains, allowing shafts of sunlight to highlight particularly verdant areas of hillside.

What a glorious way to start the day.

A walk on the quiet side

It is a beautiful Canberra winter day - you know how much I like those - and I took advantage of it by meeting up with my friend A and going for a walk with her and her 5 week old little girl. We walked, I pushed the pram, we gossiped and caught up on all the news. It was lovely in the crisp winter air but with the sun beating down.

Just a lovely interlude in the day to enjoy friendship, sun and liberty!

Climate Change

Ok, climate change is nothing to smile about, but a 15 degree afternoon in Canberra in the middle of winter sure is nice.

I was out and about this afternoon and snapped this picture of swans (you can just make them out) on Sullivan's Creek at the ANU. They looked so gorgeous, every time they came up from foraging the sun caught the drops of water on their heads and necks and gave them a shimmery, golden outline.

And standing in the sun with that very picturesque scene before me, I certainly felt at one with the world. I wish for the planet's sake that it was a normal, freezing winter, but I still enjoyed the afternoon for its own sake.

Warm Car

We have reached that really cold point in winter where even on a sunny day, the air is fairly brisk. So I ask you, is there anything better after a cold walk than getting into your car which has been sitting in the sun?

In summer it can take your breath away as you open the door and allow the heat to escape, but in winter you jump in, keeping all that enveloping warmth. You can feel all those muscles which have contracted against the cold relaxing as you let the warmth sink in. Just lovely.