Parts of Canada still have several feet of snow, with lakes frozen solid and icy roads. Victoria folk are enjoy the cherry blossoms, daffodils, camellias and all kinds of other flowers. In fact, we plant winter flower gardens to keep the streets bright and colourful from late November to early March when the snowdrops and crocuses start to bloom. This photo of a cherry tree, typical of the trees which line most streets in Victoria was taken yesterday.
Years ago when I lived in Thailand I enjoyed the bountiful harvests of fruit year-round. Flowers bloomed non-stop throughout the year and from what I recall, they were the same flowers all the year — bougainvillea, jasmine, hibiscus, orchids. Even though all of those are very beautiful, I missed my favourite from Canada, which is the daffodil. After a few years I started to miss the seasons. Thailand has a rainy season, and a rainier season. Sometimes there are a few cool days early January, but not enough to stop flowers from blooming.
The autumn in Canada is when plants start to die down, the leaves fall and vegetables are harvested. Winter is white and not much grows outside (in some parts of Canada). Spring is the best time, when one by one plants shoot up out of the ground. Flowers begin to bloom again and life is good! The new life is a reminder that there are better days ahead.
I think we need the autumn and winter of our lives to really appreciate the new life that spring brings.
Over the past 30 years I have moved several times. Strangely, the most common time of year for my move has been in October. In each new home, one of the first things I have done is to plant daffodil bulbs before the snow falls. Then, in anticipation I wait in the spring for those daffodils to bloom, bringing me hope and joy.
Reflections 