It’s Spring!
The snowblower is put away for the season, the van has been cleaned, inside and out, the daffodils are blooming, and a new coat of white paint brightens our wooden fence around the left upper yard. It’s spring, and a time of new beginnings.
If you are a quilter, you’ve probably already set aside your heavy flannel or wool fabrics and have turned to lighter, cotton weights and hues for your quilting activities. For at least a short while, we will all turn to quicker projects, avoiding others that are involved and take a lot of time.
Spring engenders a sense of hope. The days are brighter, the sun stronger, and our environs are less dreary when painted in green and pastel colors. Already the periwinkle are trailing around the yard with their light violet blooms. A patch of pansies came back from last year, although it sprouted in a different location! The ground phlox are beginning to show color, and the mint green leaves are coming back to the lilac bushes.
As each flower blooms in turn, I always think that I should capture the moment, for when the blossoms have passed, I want to remember exactly how beautiful they were, and all of the intricacies of them. Drawing a flower causes an artist to engage with it, on a deep, intimate level. We can glance at a rose, but until we see it as a composite of separate units, we don’t see it at all.
Be keenly aware of flowers this spring. They are here a short time, affording you a limited window that can be a period of study, and while you are busy looking at them, don’t forget to enjoy the terrific fragrance. Lily of the Valley is my favorite Spring flower. What’s yours?
Patricia Cummings
