The Best April Days

"The whole world was green with grass now; the yellow-green willow leaves were uncurling. Violets and buttercups were thick in the prairie hollows, and the sorrel's clover-like leaves were good to eat." 

~ Laura Ingalls Wilder, On the Banks of Plum Creek

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One of our favorite pastimes is spending time existing outside. This time of year life begins to rush very quickly and we have less and less time to just breathe. However, the little moments here and that we can catch between trips to appointments and errands and baseball games and all the mundane tasks of living we love to spend outside. It seems that, for us anyway, this clears the mind and rejuvenates the spirit. 

So, after running a recent errand we stopped here to spend some time at this nature preserve a few miles from our home. It is one of our favorite places and we visit often, in all seasons. At first, I didn't mean to linger so long but the day was warm and pleasant and the air deliciously scented with all the good smells of spring. It was easy to lose track of time. The three little ones quickly discarded their shoes and spent a long time running over the grass, splashing in the big brown puddles left after the previous days rain and shrieking with laughter. 

They ran as far as they dared, to the edge of the distant field, and back again. I took a more leisurely pace along the fringe of trees bordering the field and when the babies ran up, breathless and rosy-cheeked, they paused only to make sure I was watching before dashing off again. 

We all came home with dirty feet and wet clothes and a heart full of gratefulness to the earth and her goodness. A few baths and clothes-changes later, the children were clean and presentable again - at least until they found their next mud puddle! 😂 

*****

"Now I see the secret of making the best persons,

It is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth." 

~ Walt Whitman, Song of the Open Road 

Red Tulips

"And tulips, children love to stretch

Their fingers down, to feel in each

Its beauty's secret nearer." 

~ Elizabeth Barrett Browning, A Flower in a Letter

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When I moved here two autumns ago most of the flowering plants had already bloomed and faded and the showiest plants were a thick tangle of heavy tomato vines in the garden behind the house. The previous owners had planted a big patch of them and the plants had taken over nearly all of the garden and had grown to enormous size. From that first September to the beginning of October the little ones and I enjoyed going out each day and picking the ripe red and yellow tomatoes, warm from the sun and bursting with flavor beneath thin skins. 

That first spring after moving I had no idea what to expect in the flower beds around the house. I didn't really expect anything at all but to my surprise that first April brought a massive sweep of yellow daffodils in the back yard, clumps of them in the front flower beds and - to my delight - a lovely show of bright red tulips. 

Tulips do not last very long so this spring we have been enjoying them to the fullest extent possible. They arrived pretty early this year and we watched with excitement as they began to swell and open. As of now, they have already peaked and are starting to drop their petals. If we are lucky they will last a few more days. Tonight Rosie found a broken one and brought it inside, where it faintly perfumes the entire room she put it in. 

Just as in Elizabeth Barrett Brownings poem, Rosie loves to peer into the bowl of each tulip and to carefully feel the velvety centers. We recently read the story of Thumbelina so she cherishes the hope that perhaps, just maybe, she might find a tiny little girl inside. This fairy-tale book was given to me by my grandparents when I was very small and the timeless stories and lovely illustrations are just as enjoyable to my little ones as they were to me - and for that matter, just as enjoyable to me, now almost 33, as they were when I was young!

Red tulips symbolize eternal love and I feel blessed to have such pretty messengers spring up in my front garden each year! Although, certainly, none of them are prettier than my own sweet Rose. 

*****

"The sun
Smiles on the earth, and the exuberant earth
Returns the smile in flowers-'twas so with me:
I love thee as a fountain leaps to light
I can do nothing else."

~ Alexander Smith

April Violets

"Down in a green and shady bed, 

A modest violet grew, 

Its stalk was bent, it hung its head, 

As if to hide from view. 

And yet it was a lovely flower, 

Its colours bright and fair; 

It might have graced a rosy bower, 

Instead of hiding there, 

Yet there it was content to bloom, 

In modest tints arrayed; 

And there diffused its sweet perfume, 

Within the silent shade. 

Then let me to the valley go, 

This pretty flower to see; 

That I may also learn to grow 

In sweet humility"

~ Jane Taylor (1783-1824)

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This time of year violets are everywhere. They were one of our earliest flowers this year, showing up in late March. Now, in mid-April, our entire yard is full of their sweet purple blossoms and I have not yet been able to convince myself to get out the mower, even though the grass is getting tall enough to cut.

Ever since the two youngest ones have found out that violets are edible they hit up the yard whenever they feel the urge and pluck and eat these little beauties, leaves, stems and all. I've tried one and they taste almost like nothing, at least unprepared! Before the season is over I should try to candy some of the petals and use them to decorate a cake or some cookies. I think this recipe looks very good!

Violets have been my favorite flower since I can recall having a preference. When I was a little girl my Grampie stood with me on the little hill in his Rhode Island yard and tried to convince me of the beauty of the creamy buttercups that grew there in abundance. He plucked one and placed it beneath my chin, looking critically to see if its yellow hue was reflected on my skin. If it was, it meant that I liked to eat butter. I could not have been more than a few years old but even then I remember adamantly preferring violets, although I hoped I would not hurt his feelings by saying so and I did like butter, very much.

*****

"When you talk to me, I smell violets." 

~ L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Windy Poplars