MUSINGS FROM THE BOWER  2

For several months I was unwell, cumulating in pneumonia which entailed a few weeks stay in hospital. Now, back at home and, hopefully, recovered, I am conscious that I am slower than I was previously, both physically and mentally. The medications I was on, as well as the stress of being ill, will take time to disappear from my system, and it doesn’t help that we are experiencing the worst spring for years – cold, windy and rainy. I’m reluctant to go out in these conditions, worried that they might make me ill again. I long for sunshine and warmth as I know that they will instantly make me feel better.

The blossom on the apple tree, the crab apples and the other fruit trees in the garden is beautiful, despite the rain. In fact, the raindrops add a new dimension to the beauty of the flowers, and sunshine on rain-washed blooms not only intensifies their colour, the water droplets create rainbow-filled diamonds on the petals. I was looking at one of our conifer bushes recently and every tiny frond sported a rain pearl, while the grass below bore a misty sheen that sparkled in the sun.

Our garden is tiny, yet there is still so much to see. The other day I looked into our small pond and watched the smooth newts stomping around on the bottom, like tigers stalking their prey. These were male newts, and they were following the plainer females. Soon they will leave the water, and will curl up under stones during the daytime, venturing out in the evenings – when we have to be extremely careful where we tread as they tend to sprawl on the path. There are also toad tadpoles in the pond, so, assuming that they won’t all be eaten by newts, there will no doubt be toadlets on our path, too!

The blue tits are nesting in the bird box, and their young have hatched so the parents are extremely busy, constantly to-ing and fro-ing in their search for food for their babies. Normally, blue tits are quite timid, but at this time of the year they change – they querulously churr at us if we dare go into the garden, and they bravely visit the feeder on the window glass, which they normally shy away from. Unfortunately, a cat and a magpie have both noticed the activity around the box and have heard the cries of the youngsters. The parent birds will need all their skill and a lot of luck to get those babies out when neither predator is around.

Despite the rain and the wind and the cold, life goes on – trees blossom, plants bloom and birds breed. Nature is wonderful.