Blossom and Frost in a Single Day
Welcome to British Springtime!
Do you like to grow stuff?
I do. It’s one of my favourite middle-age pastimes.
Growing from seed makes me happy; maybe it’s because every day there’s something new popping it’s head out of the dirt to greet me. Maybe it’s because I can’t grow a baby so I grow plants instead. Who knows.
In 2021, I had an allotment. It was literally across the street from my house, and me and my husband would go there every day to tend our crops and create a little haven for ourselves.
That year I wanted to grow sunflowers. I adore their big, showy blooms which can be as big as my head, the birds love them, and they can be left over-winter to feed the wildlife in the coldest months.
But I made a mistake.
In the UK, and in particular where I’m based in the East Midlands, we can get overnight frosts right up to the beginning of May. This means you should wait until all risk of frost has passed before planting out tender things, like sunflowers.
(For those who aren’t gardeners, “tender” means it can’t cope with sub-zero temperatures).
I’m too impatient. I wanted to plant the sunflowers out early and give them time to grow really big and tall. And I wanted the space back in the greenhouse to grow more shit.
I fucked up.
Let’s just say, the frosts came and destroyed the whole crop. They looked like a scene from a Stephen King story. Here’s a photo of one very sad looking plant; I’m not sure why I decided to use black & white, probably I thought I was being hilarious and arty.
The moral of the story is: don't assume you know better than nature.
My word for April is AWAKENING, and I’ve been thinking about what that means to me as a freelance writer.
I’m amazed it’s taken me 41 years to figure out that I’m seasonal, just like the planet. Every year of my adult life, I've tried desperately to keep going with the same vigour as the rest of the year, battling against my nature and biology.
I didn’t recognise (or respect) the need to rest and recuperate; to hibernate, if you will. Since becoming a freelancer, it’s obvious to me that rest is just as important as work. I work with more ease, and my writing is much better, after a period of incubation. Hardly breaking news, but I'm still learning.
So when I talk about AWAKENING, I’m talking about coming out of my winter slumber. The short winter days here in the Northern hemisphere make it difficult to achieve much of anything.
My chronic illnesses and hormonal imbalances mean it takes me ages to unfurl in the morning. Even with yoga and meditation it can be hours between waking up and sitting down to work. In winter, by the time I’ve done everything I need to do in a day, it’s time to go to bed. And I fought that so damn hard for years.
Now, though, I appreciate how important rest is for me. Not just in winter, but across the year.
We’ve had a really warm start to the spring here in England. Two weeks of glorious sunshine have seen me spending hours at a time sitting in the garden. Sometimes I'm writing, but I spend just as much time looking at the birds and watching trees throw out their summer foliage.
I’ve realised how much I love the in-between times, the transition from winter to spring, or summer to autumn. Not too hot, but not too cold. Just call me Goldilocks.
AWAKENING is about so much more than just waking up. It means opening up your whole heart and mind to the wonders of the world around us.
April is my New Year; it's when I emerge from my winter cocoon and reintegrate with the rest of humanity. As my garden beds become flush with seedlings, I love to sit outside in the stillness and peace of the early mornings. It seeps into my soul, ready to carry me through the rest of the day 🌱
Here’s some questions for you to ponder on the theme of AWAKENING:
When or where do you feel most ‘awake’?
How can you incorporate rest and hibernation into your year (and do you feel the urge to do this)?
Which is your favourite season and why?
Let me know your thoughts by adding a comment.
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This story was originally published on my website and is cross-posted here for a wider audience. View the original post here.
Sunflowers are such beauties I can’t help but smile when I see them.