A 'Joyride' in a Garden Centre

"The greenhouse overflowed with a dazzling array of beautiful plants.

And as I scanned the beauty spilling out of innumerable planters and pots

and baskets, I realized that the beauty now on display had always laid in

the seeds. And if the seeds had not been cultivated the beauty within would

have certainly remained, but it would have remained forever hidden." 

CRAIG D. LOUNSBROUGH, as seen on GoodReads

I'm sure you, too, have experienced that 'dazzling array of beautiful plants . . . spilling out of innumerable planters and pots and baskets' when visiting your local garden centre. Would you agree it's one of the delectable treats of Spring? They delight our senses. They beguile us. They give us a thrill of anticipation from the moment we walk in. With all the array of designs, textures, and colours, it's hard to know what to look at first. And soon the buggy gets fuller and fuller. I am SO glad for the gift of sight and the ability to take in the colours of the earth... and the greenhouse. I do relate to Sir Winston Churchill's joyful phrase when, as an artist, he expressed his own 'joyride in a paintbox'. Though I'm not an artist with paint, I certainly appreciate those joyrides in a garden centre. They are so hope-filled.

Below are a few photos from our visit... plus a photo at the bottom taken yesterday morning during our walk: the first sighting of our Alberta wild rose with its pink scented petals and very poky stems. These are always a joy to come across.

Today I'm thinking of my dear girlhood chum, Linda, who can no longer get out to enjoy her usual jaunts to the garden centres or take walks in the breezes, spotting those much welcomed familiar pink blossoms of the wild rose for herself. This post is for you, dear Linda, with hopes this bit of garden beauty in a post will lift your spirits even though you can't get out there to see it in person. ( ( ( 💕 ) ) ) 

"Summer, don't be shy, stay awhile!"

UNKNOWN

"One benefit of summer was that each day

we had more light to read by."

JEANNETTE WALLS

"Summer afternoon; to me those have always been

the two most beautiful words in the English language."

HENRY JAMES, The Portrait of a Lady

"I wonder what it would be like to live in a

world where it was always June."

L.M. MONTGOMERY

"In early June the world of leaf and blade and

flowers explodes, and every sunset is different."

JOHN STEINBECK, The Winter of Our Discontent

"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

and summer's lease hath all too short a date."

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the

grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to

the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float

across the sky, is by no means a waste of time."

JOHN LUBBOCK, The Use of Life

"The Alberta wild rose, also known as the prickly wild rose, was

designated the floral emblem of Alberta in 1930 and is a symbol

of the province's natural beauty and strong prairie spirit. It's also

cherished for its unique characteristics, including its vibrant pink petals

and sweet fragrance. The rose's ability to thrive in harsh conditions is

is seen as a representation of endurance and resilience."

- info found from several sources online

Before I sign off, I want to give you a heads up that I will be away from the blog for the next few weeks. To spend time in the garden. To enjoy the warm weather. To go on little road trips. To spend time with family. Plus, my oldish computer has been sending me various error codes and have been showing up more often. So it's high time to update. Thankfully, I beaverishly got everything backed up (in the cloud and on my external hard drives) last week so I hope things are safe, fingers crossed, while we get all this sorted.

And now I wish you a beautiful June . . . please take care, and I hope you have a wonderful start to summer.

❦

Heart hugs,

Brenda

Photo credits:

Brenda Leyland @ It's A Beautiful Life