Early spring

Everything is a bit early this year. The azaleas are starting to bloom, the Japanese magnolia blossoms are a fading but beautiful memory, and the oak tree out my window is starting to bud and leaf out. I am not sure if this is related to the overall global changes in climate, but things seem different this spring. Nevertheless, early or late, I rejoice in the new growth and the flowers that bring such hope and promise at this time of year. Spring is the season of new birth and renewal. To me it is an even more symbolic time than fall when all the signs in Nature point toward winter.

It's still winter, though, officially, and the paradoxically blooming winter shrub, the camellia, is at it peak of blooms at the state park. Every time I go there, I walk through a wonderland of pink, red, and delicate white flowers. It's so extraordinary to me -- all that beauty in the depth of winter and into early spring.

My February walks there yielded a treasure trove of images, not least among them, photos of those spectacular and beautiful camellias which all during this winter have reminded me that spring is coming and that life and hope and beauty transcend the seasons, our moods, and all the events and occurrences in this life that would keep winter in our hearts. The beautiful camellias in bloom in the heart of winter are the small miracles and signposts of life that I find daily no matter what it looks like outside or my mood at the time.

Camellias and February at the state park