Shadows
Haiku 285
Shadows sometimes glimpsed
From the corner of my eye
Where you used to be
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Dear WordPress friends. Thank you for your kind, heartfelt comments on my last post.
The love you shared gave me strength,
And it is what makes the world a better place.
post script: The photo is of an Arum Lily by my stoep, with shadows cast on it from the sun filtering through the leaves on the grape vine above.
Apple Blossom 1
Haiku 280
Gnarly old branches
Every spring surprising me
With new beginnings
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My ancient apple tree was here when we bought the house, eons ago.
Its trunk is lumpy and diseased, yet it still somehow manages to regenerate each year.
Apple Blossom 2
Every time I walk past this tree I check it for new growth. First there were a few new green leaves.
Then finally, one day, I spot what I’ve been waiting for. The first apple blossom.
Now it is spring!
Freesias
Haiku 278
Carry on shining
Filter sunlight through petals
Still providing joy
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I cut these few freesias before they got too frazzled, as they were growing horizontally. They continued to give me pleasure as they sat in their vase on the little side unit, bathed in sunlight.
My freesias have all just about finished. Now I have the long wait for the leaves to shrivel up and the bulb to restore its energy, before I can tidy up the plant pots.
But I can’t complain, as I have had many weeks of colour and scent from these little plants – and more than a few blog posts!
Daffodil
Haiku 277
A bright flash of skirts
Differing shades of yellow
Daffy-down-dilly!
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I’m not sure how I remembered the phrase “Daffy-down-dilly” – (it must have been hiding in the depths of my childhood memories for more decades than I care to think about) – but once recalled, it was perfect, at five syllables, for a line in my haiku!
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post script: Daffy-down-dilly was first mentioned in a novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1843.
The poem which I remember, is as follows:
Daffy-down-dilly
Has come to town
With a yellow petticoat
And a pretty green gown
Wild Flower 1
Haiku 276
What you doing here?
So pretty yet unwanted
Little wild flower
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Wild Flower 2
I found this purple flower growing in the wild asparagus pot. At first I thought it was a flower from the asparagus, until I remembered that the asparagus makes white flowers, that later turn into tiny red berries.
Then I saw that the weed had grown up from the lawn at the bottom of the stoep and was actually very tall!
Wild Flower 3
Well, pretty as it is, it’s gone now, as I’ve just weeded there, on my hands and knees.
You may say, “Shame man!” (Well, if you’re South African, that’s the expression you’d use!) But this time of year in Cape Town, Everything grows madly. If I want my flowers to stand a chance of not being strangled to death, I have to weed constantly.
But no worries, this wild flower grows all around my garden.
Red Rose 1
Haiku 275
Start the week brightly
Magnificent creation
A red rose for you
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Red Rose 2
This is the first rose to open in my garden this early summer.
However, it may be the only bloom that I get from this “rose bush”, because it is actually just one lone stalk!
Still, it is magnificent; large and beautifully scented.
One is enough.
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I dedicate this rose to all my loyal readers. Thank you for your support, comments and likes. They are always most welcome, but especially over the last years of Lockdown and isolation, which have been harsh here in South Africa.
Periwinkle
Haiku 274
A touch of purple
In variegated leaves
The periwinkle
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Appropriated* from next door, these periwinkle keep on spreading, both in size and delight.
All the more enjoyable, because they didn’t cost me a penny!
*The plants grew from my neighbour’s side, under the creeping vines that were removed when the wall was put up. I can’t help it if some of them preferred my side!
Arum Lily
Haiku 273
Black and white study
A time of simplicity
Pure Arum Lily
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In these stressful times, take a moment to appreciate Nature.
Just breathe.
Pink Freesia
Haiku 272
Latest addition
Shyly showing her colours
All pretty in pink
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My freesia bulbs continue to open in a variety of colours. The latest is this pretty pink one.
So far it is the only pink, among many white, red, purple and yellow.
At about R3 a bulb, these were definitely a good buy!
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R3 is about 15p in UK, or 21c in USA.
Red Rose
Haiku 271
Broken down beauty
Dusky petals unfurling
Lovely to behold
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Sometimes when I am at the local shops buying boring supplies, I will also buy a bunch of roses. We enjoy them for a week or two, as the buds slowly open.
There are always 15 roses in the bunch. However, when I was trimming them and placing in a vase, I only counted 14 roses. Then I noticed one stalk with no rose!
I found the head of the rose on the floor.
So I popped it in my tiny cut-glass vase, filled to the brim with water, and placed it on the window ledge in the kitchen.
This bud too is slowly opening up.
And it makes the washing up much more pleasant!
Mad Cap Dog 