The delight of delphiniums

(Can't resist the alliteration!)
As yet, the flowers in our new garden are few. But we do have some that I've been trying to grow ever since coming to North America. Yes, the delphiniums are looking splendid. This morning aI indulged myself and picked a couple for a vase. I've an idea they're the same variety as my family in England grow -- Arthur and Guinevere. How romantic is that?

Actually, I've recently finished the first two volumes of Mary Stewart's trilogy, The Crystal Cave and The Hollow Hills. They're simply wonderful, the mood she creates so magical. Makes me wish I wrote historical novels.

The other flowers I'm really happy to grow here are tulips. Yes, we had a few in South Africa, but those bulbs had to be replanted every year and never looked as stunning as they do in cooler climes.

Summer time

So the solstice has passed and here we are in the height of summer. The trouble is I haven't yet learned to change seasons quickly enough so that I make the absolute most of it. It only dawned on me this past week that I could take my laptop out onto the deck and thus move to an outdoor 'office'. Not that I'm out there right now. It's raining.

But it was a beautiful weekend, the trees already heavy with leaves, the new growth settling in and making them larger and fuller, and the hay looking like it'll soon be ripe enough to cut.

Not having seen our new grandson since Friday, we popped over yesterday evening. How much he'd changed during those 48 hours! It's truly amazing. Those early weeks, months, years go by so quickly and the changes are so immense. I guess it's lucky that this process slows down considerably as we age. At least, I hope it does!

Yesterday I attended an end of the year social. Yes, I'm still in the early stages of creating a new circle of friends. Before setting off I actually took the time to sit down at my dressing table and put on make-up. Quite a bit. Much more than I usually do these days. When I checked my enhanced appearance I got quite a shock. It reminded me of the long ago days when I had a part-time job as a fashion model. The first morning I went into work my husband commented he felt like he was giving a stranger a ride! That was in the dolly-bird 'seventies when we wore false eyelashes. Amazing that they're here again.

Generally, as I get older, less seems to make more. I think I'll be happy enough to gently fade away!

Shapes and figures

Now that summer's here and skimpier clothes are being worn (yeay!) I'm more aware of the state of my shape. Luckily, because of the activity involved with looking after the little person, I only put on a couple of pounds during the winter and they've already disappeared. But my bra feels too tight and I'm wondering if I need to go up a size. Not that my boobs are any bigger, but because the circumference of my ribcage seems to have increased. I'm wondering if this is one of those 'normal ageing' rules.

Shape changes generally I find quite interesting. Not long ago I read an article in the Guardian online about how women's waist measurements have increased over the past 40 or so years. When I was young my friends and I prided ourselves on our narrow waists, and wore tight belts to show them off. These days belts are often worn around the hips and it's been quite a few years that we've been wearing our waistlines low low below our waist. This meant no-one worried too much about the waist measurement. I think that's partly what plays into the phenomenon. How, I'm not quite sure.

The thing is, I remember noticing how many young girls seemed to have very narrow, boyish hips during those years when skinny, skimpy jeans came into fashion. How was this suddenly possible? Was this shape change caused perhaps by a mixture of wishing and focus of consciousness on a certain area of the body? Because I don't think a Darwinistic evolution can happen so quickly. Something mysterious worked there, but I wonder exactly what.

The year gone by and started

So it's a year since I moved cities in order to be closer to family and look after the little person. Spring has followed winter, winter came after autumn, and autumn after summer, and I've experienced the full cycle of the year. Having made many adjustments and a start on becoming familiar with the seen and unseen elements of this new environment, I'm in a different place from where I was a year ago, and, hopefully, I'm a better person. Yes, there've been many changes and challenges, not least to my not-as-good-as-it-used-to-be energies. How many times I've been exhausted. How many times exhilarated through this great privilege of watching a child grow during these crucial first three years (two on Wednesday). Generally, though, it's been good. So there is a cyclical element, but also, hopefully (again), progress.

Right now, it feels like the start of a new year to me. This made me wonder: what or when really is the start of a new year. Is it via the calendar that says January? Or September, the time of Michaelmas when school and everything else starts up again after the summer break? But what about Advent, the start of the church year? And then there's also Easter, where my Calendar of the Soul weekly verses begin.

As I begin to dream into summer, my own vote would be for September. This for me is when the zing of autumn brings new zest and strength for new initiatives and generally helps me to get down to the business and creativity of living.