Friday, June 24, 2022

Friday Favourites

 


Our peonies are almost spent, but now the roses have their turn in the spotlight. Secret, Boscobel, Gertrude Jekyll, and Bolero above delight me with their colour, fragrance, and form. Both Boscobel and Bolero have slightly different colours this year than last. Bolero (bottom right) is especially different. Usually pure white, these blooms are creamy pink with some yellow. The plant is not near any other roses, so I wonder why? 

My classroom is tidy, my keys are turned in, and I'm footloose and fancy-free. Sort of. Mary Oliver captured the feeling of freedom in her poem "'Just as the Calendar Began to Say Summer". 


I went out of the schoolhouse fast
and through the gardens and to the woods
and spent all summer forgetting what I'd been taught - 

two times two, and diligence, and so forth,
and how to be modest and useful, and how to succeed 
and so forth,
machines and oil and plastic and money and so forth.

By fall I had healed somewhat, but was summoned back
to the chalky rooms and the desks, to sit and remember

the way the river kept rolling its pebbles,
the way the wild wrens sang as though they hadn't a penny
in the bank,
the way the flowers were dressed in nothing but light.

Mary Oliver



After weeks of cool temperatures and lots of rain, we're in for a bit of a warm spell and all I can say is "hooray"! I'll revel in it while it lasts. 
I collected the creamy white umbrel flowers of elderberry this week to make an Elderflower Cordial. 


The syrup is mixed with Club Soda or Tonic Water, or white wine for a refreshing drink with a floral flavour. I'm looking forward to sipping this on the patio. We finally put up the canvas gazebo and pulled out the patio furniture. It's just not been pleasant enough to sit outside until now. 


Lavender buds are opening and the bees are busy there. We're enjoying lettuce, radishes, spinach, and strawberries from the garden these days. It is all so achingly beautiful. Not an ache that goes away with Tylenol or Advil, but an ache that creates longing for something, an emotion that awakens passions, and causes us to dream about life the way it could be. It's fleeting, this ache, but oh, so memorable. Do you feel that way, too?
I think it's a reflection of the way we're made in the image of God, who is the ultimate Creator of beauty.


Feverfew. Simple and sweet, and very friendly. Little plants spring up throughout my garden. They are easy enough to pull and discard, or transplant in a blank spot in the garden. 

So the weekend begins. A weekend without a Monday schedule to anticipate. I'll definitely be outdoors while the warmth lasts, at least until Wednesday. Then, who knows? 

19 comments:

  1. Lovely post and pictures
    The ache in the form a feeling something bright and new is about to happen or should be. I wonder if it is a side effect of a pandemic, hope rising up from under the weight of sorrow, like isostatic rebound when a glacier melts its way north.

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  2. Your roses are so beautiful. I am happy your weather is getting better, you can enjoy the garden.

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  3. Lovely roses and nice perfume I expect!
    Here we have lost many degrees 20 degrees it is grey rainy and windy, but I appreciate!
    I hope her health will improve soon , my son is slowly recovering.
    Nice to have finish school you will have plenty of time now!

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  4. #how very lovely your rose photos are, ideal for a David Austin brochure! I am revelling in the new buds, the laden branches of flowers. Too soon they will be over.
    How well I understand that ache, a mixture of intense joy and a need to capture this moment for ever. I stand in the garden early in the morning, because my husband is often wakeful by 6am, and just gaze, and feel incredibly thankful that another year of gardening is evolving and bringing such joy.

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  5. Exquisite photography...
    Yay for the end of classroom chores this season. I don't
    think you'll be able to stay away forever. ☺️
    Enjoy the warmth. We have a weekend in the high 80s
    before it mercifully slips back to something cooler for another week.

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  6. I wonder why your rose (Bolero) has changed colour from last year. The blooms are described as creamy white with pink tinge but yours seems to have more than just a tinge. It is lovely nevertheless. Your roses are all so beautiful
    Isn't Feverfew a great plant? It self seeds but the seedlings are easy to pull if they're in the wrong place.
    The weather this weekend is going to be hot but we've waited for this sunshine so we won't complain. I'm sure you're enjoying your freedom again.

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  7. Have a well earned rest and enjoy the glory of these summer days!

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  8. Or being thankful to be able to enjoy the beauty of the summer garden then realizing that it won't last, feeling that pang or ache when it fades. You have created quite metaphoric discussion here. Enjoy the weekend and the rest of the summer.

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  9. That lovely feeling on a Sunday evening when it’s no school the next day. Enjoy your second retirement with a beautiful garden to savour and enjoy. B x

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  10. Hi Lorrie~ I always love your beautiful photos, you are an amazing photographer! My DIL is a teacher and she is always, as I'm sure you are, thankful for a chance to recharge for the upcoming school year. Rest, read, play and plant is her motto! Enjoy your week-end. Hugs, Barb

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  11. Beautiful post! Loved your photos. That cordial you make sounds delicious. And oh yes, I feel that ache..."an ache that creates longing for something, an emotion that awakens passions, and causes us to dream about life the way it could be." Like you, I do dream about life as it could be if we were all kinder and more in tune with our natural world and its rhythms, the rhythms the Great Creator gave it, and us. In the meantime, we shall revel in the glimpses of heaven that come our way...through the lovely blogs such as yours.

    Many thanks for a lovely visit, Lorrie. Happy day!
    Brenda xo

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  12. I forgot you were teaching! What a great time of year, especially that first free Monday!
    Your peonies are lovely, and the cordial. What a great idea.

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  13. Today is a hot day here for us and Monday is suppose to be hotter. That's so interesting about the color change on the Bloom. Glad you can enjoy sitting out in the warmth!

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  14. Hello, Lorrie. Your roses are gorgeous. I am especially partial to "Secret." My goodness, she is lovely.

    Now I have serious questions - your Elderberry. Is it native to your area or did you plant it. I have always been interested in it for its many fine qualities. I kept the recipe that I found printed somewhere for Megan Markle and Prince Harry's wedding cake, which is an Elderberry and Lemon Cake. I may get up my nerve to give it a go - it doesn't really look difficult.

    Love your post - have a lovely weekend!

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  15. You've described that summer feelings perfectly. Oh, and that Mary Oliver poem, yes I felt taht feeing of freedom as a kid when school was out in the summer and again later when I worked at the high school and couldn't wait for summer to beginn during those last chaotic weeks of the school year.
    Your roses are beautiful and how I love the lavender.

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  17. Your roses are gorgeous, Lorrie.

    Have a well deserved rest and enjoy your summer, my friend.

    ((hugs and blessings))

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  18. As usual, I'm admiring your pretty floral shots!

    I especially like the lavender image. I used to hate lavender teas, but I guess my taste buds have evolved because now I enjoy them!

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  19. I have faverfew popping up in different places in the garden too.
    I love, love elderflower cordial and always make a batch. Today I drank some with sparkling water and fresh crushed strawberries. What a treat.
    Love Mary Oliver too. What a perfect poem for the end of the school year.

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