Friday, May 04, 2012

An Evening in Early May



One day last week, before the steady rain moved in, the air was mild and deliriously scented with lilac and lily-of-the-valley. Birds soared and sailed and sang. I could not be indoors on such an evening so I left the supper dishes to soak in the sink and went for a walk.

The lettuce fields were newly plowed and killdeer flew low over the turned earth, shrieking and calling. Often they lay their eggs in the furrows. I can't imagine many survive, but year after year they repeat their folly. In a few weeks, this field will be green with baby lettuce leaves ready for harvest. The farmer sells them to the local restaurants and to private customers. They are delectable but I prefer to grow my own. The pots on my patio already sport their own baby lettuce leaves along with spinach, peas, and little potato shoots.

The water in the mill pond looked like a mirror. Swallows swooped and dove over the surface, seining the air for bugs, of which there were millions upon millions dancing in the sun-beams. The air was so sweet I could almost taste it. The sun set in a swirl of pink and pure gold.



Time to turn back toward home and those dishes.

8 comments:

Brian Miller said...

nice...sounds like you got quite the show...smiles...hope you have a lovely weekend!

Tabor said...

Lucky you! Love it!

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful walk. I can almost smell the lilacs from here. Thank you!

steven said...

pauline - this is such a sweet word painting!!! wow! steven

Unknown said...

You are a wise woman. And incredibly talented.

Pauline said...

Brian - the nice weather is going to put a huge dent in my blogging time!

Tabor - lucky me is right! I lead such a beautiful life!

Barbara - the lilacs, the lily-of-the-valley - I'm drunk on scent.

Steven - praise from a master - thanks :)

Deb - wise and talented - thank you!

Judith said...

Oh my, so beautiful! From the lovely header photo to the gorgeous prose. I could see and smell all your sights. A magical evening.
And the dishes, no doubt, waited patiently.

Pauline said...

J - I keep expecting the dishes fairy but she never shows, so yes, they were there waiting for me.