The blackthorn is starting to blossom in sheltered spots.
Soon, the delicate detail of individual flowers will be masked by the snowstorm-like appearance of white bloom along hedges and motorways.
The violets are out today,
perhaps to greet all who nurture (it is mother’s day in the UK),
perhaps to delight those who stop and notice,
and certainly to just be.
You may well ask … It’s one of my favourite oak trees on my walks, sun shining through branches, seen through a shard of cobalt blue ‘night soil’ glass washed out of the abandoned daffodil fields in Silver Valley by recent rain.
Sometimes it is useful to look at life through a different lense.
Violets are starting to flower in Cornwall.
Looking more closely, I’m intrigued by the change of colour pattern on their leaves as they mature with more daylight hours.
Are we sometimes focusing too much on the obvious?
The thought came to me walking past daffodil foliage today…not a flower bud in sight on this variety, but such appeal in the structure of the leaves and the contrastingly coloured tips.
Cold weather rewards:
I love those little towers of ice extruded from the soil during a mild frost.
I say ‘extruded’ because they are all topped with a little crown of soil (or an acorn), indicating that they have been pushed up.
Perhaps when the ground freezes and the water expands into ice, it can only go up, slowly building overnight?
Near running water, these little sculptures grows to an inch or two before curling over under their own weight (or perhaps in the wind?).
The delicate structure suggest that strands of ice rise from individual soil pores and grow together…
…but if there is anybody reading this who actually knows how they come into being, please get in touch.
I am fascinated by the eery beauty of the shore’s reflections in the mirror of the water.
Horizontal symmetry.
Rocks and branches disappear into the image.
And I see different things every time.
Last day of January and heavy rain.
I’m walking my dog.
What is there to enjoy?
First, I’m moving, breathing, my senses function.
Second, there is beauty in detail: texture, colour, form.
Just look!
Outdoor Daily III
Local lanes provide surprising vistas at different times and light conditions.
An overcast winter afternoon shows grey in the east and orange in the west.
Snow on Dartmoor in the sunshine is a rare treat, and particularly appreciated on the first day of the new year.
Simply beautiful!
As the second covid-19 lockdown in the UK draws to a close, I won’t be alone in, once more, evaluating the important things in life.
For me it’s having positive, loving and healthy relationships.
With nature: being outdoors, experiencing it with all senses, exploring and observing, learning and understanding, connecting deeply and striving towards sustainability.
With people: family, friends, communities, humanity in all its diversity and self.
Clarity. Stripped down to the foundations of happiness, wellbeing and resilience.
Who needs (blood) diamonds when nature sparkles in so many ways?
Without environmental devastation…
…without exploitation…
…and for free!
Challenging Habitat Blog 
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