Overnight

Overnight
strong winds
and driving rain
batter the emerging blossom
on the old cherry tree.

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This will probably by my last post for a while - we are off on our continental travels again, visiting friends and relatives in France before continuing on to our daughter in Spain. I'll pop in from time to time if I can, though internet access can be variable, as I am taking my laptop with me. Otherwise I should be back at the end of May. Thankful that our youngest can be at home holding the fort and feeding the birds.

Beside the Road

Beside the road
on the way to town;
three pheasant, one badger.
Roadkill.

Blessed

Day
of sunshine
and showers, blessed
with many coloured arc.
Rainbow.

Early

Out for an early bike ride
while the weather is fine
before the sun is high enough
to wake the celandine.

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As the forecast for later in the day wasn't good we decided on an early bike ride today, trying to make up our miles for the month. The sun was struggling to break through the clouds and all the early celandine along the roadside still had its petals furled. We did a bit over 20 miles on one of our tandems and it gradually got warmer and sunnier as we went. It still hasn't rained but the sun has gone behind cloud cover so who knows, it may do so before the day is out. The forecast is not good for the next several days either so this may be the last bike ride of the month.

Green Shoots

New
green shoots
in various shades.
At last it arrives;
Spring.

Crowned

In the Spring sunshine
magnificent magnolia gleams,
looking very regal,
crowned like a queen.

Mirror

Big puddles by the roadside
hold a mirror to the sky;
Mother Nature's gift soon gone
once the road's are dry.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 
Out on a bike ride today I decide to take a more positive view of the many flooded patches along the roadside and sometimes right across the road. The ground is so saturated just now that even the slightest rainfall is enough to cause big puddles and minor flooding.

Grey Skies

Here we go - more of the same
dull grey skies that look like rain.
When will we see blue skies again?

Turning the Tide

Turning the tide of the seasons,
Spring steadily forward creeps,
keeping up the pressure until
Winter finally admits defeat.

Blossom

Raw
wintery chill.
Button to chin.
Blossom in the hedgerows --
Blackthorn.