Better Late than Never

May 29, 2017 – My lilacs are finally opening…about four weeks late this year and the bloom set doesn’t look to be spectacular, but at least that heady scent I love so much is finally in the air. The rhododendrons are also weeks behind, and only now is the lilac rhodo finally fully blooming. The first flower didn’t open until May 15th. But better late than never.

Rhododendrons weren’t a part of my life growing up, so although I love them and appreciate their spectrum of colours, they don’t hold the special place in my heart that lilacs do.

We had a hedge of traditional lilacs between our front yard and the neighbour’s, and there was a very large white lilac tree in the backyard. But it is my Granny’s lilacs that I remember particularly well. On the farm she had a massive bush against the house near the kitchen, the window by her sewing corner faced directly into it. And I remember that heavy scent filling the air. I also remember the hummingbirds that would perch in it’s branches.

When Granny and Grandad moved off the farm and into the house across from the church, lilacs were still a part of the landscape. A number of large ones lined the edge of the yard where the bank dropped off, providing a spectacularly scented backdrop.

To this day, whenever I smell lilacs, I am transported back in time.

117 Photos in 2017 – 17. Flower Power