Dreaming the World

A morning of sun and cloud, showers and blue sky. It’s June and purple is strewn across the landscape. Irises and a host of flowering bushes flood the world with hues of red, blue, and combinations thereof. It is a feast, brief and lush.

Here on the coast most days remain chilly and damp. Yesterday went from a rich warmth to a cold rain in what seemed like mere minutes. I closed windows and turned on the gas fireplace; the deep chill slowly gaving way to pleasant warmth. Hot tea helped.

Mating season is at its height and on warm mornings the air is rich with birdsong. It is always fun to look out a window and see our resident birds looking in on us. Often thy want to be fed, but some days they just seem to be as curious about our doings as we are about theirs. Yesterday the very young deer joined the birds, rabbits, and squirrels at the feeder. I stood at the window, enjoying watching her, looked away, and she was gone.

On the moving front, we are down to three weeks. Jennie is away teaching this week so everything is in a bit of a holding pattern. There is a sense that one might catch a breath and even Nori the Cat seems to have calmed down. More boxes fill our rooms and fewer objects remain to be packed by us. Most of our art and family photos are securely wrapped and many are packed away. Only a few remain to be taken from the wall that leads up the stairs from the kitchen to the studio.

We have begun the task of trimming plants back, composting a couple that did not overwinter well, giving a few away, and sending others to their owners. As I watered yesterday I counted those that remain (41) and began to imagine which might fit in our much reduced space and where they might land. My ficus, which has journeyed with me for some forty years, was some ten feet tall. After a couple of strong pruning’s it is now less than half that and looks great.

This past stormy Saturday we went to Providence in hopes of catching some of Porch Fest, the annual city-wide music event. We also were searching for light fixtures to replace those existing in the kitchen of the new house. Given the tempest did not break until late in the afternoon, and the lighting quest was unsuccessful, we counted a delicious Thai lunch as a win, caught about 15 seconds of music as we drove by one active porch, and drove home. It was a good day.