Sunday, July 5, 2015

Thermal and Not so Thermal

Here I am wrapped up in my cloaks, cold itself.
Well, no. I'd got out on my bicycle today to the Ballarat Botanical Gardens in a sudden and unexpected blaze of winter sunshine. Here you're looking out from the Gardens across Lake Wendouree.
Winter's an honest time. There's no dodging the fact significant signs of life have vanished. And yet, significant signs of life are surfacing.
Bravo, Hercules, I say.
Confession: I'd got out on my bike to sweep clear the remnants of a late night spent in front of an open fire, risotto and red in hand. Did I deserve such beauty?
There are Sequoias and Redwoods and Firs here, here in this Victorian, ordered space, one of my very favourite places in the world, where not so long ago others promenaded without a bicycle, but perhaps too with a little hangover and with a sense of occasion.
What joy it was to see these Hellebores up. Did I say that Ballarat is the coldest place in the world? Forget Scotland, forget Antarctica...remember Ballarat.
Here's my favourite ever flower, one of the Banksias, blooming in the cold as so many of us natives do.
And another. This is winter? You could have fooled me and my heating bill.
I AM THE LION, warm and warming, he says...
...however cool the prospect...

10 comments:

  1. Very good, Faisal. The skies look fresh and clean. No time for wintersleep!

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    1. I'm not too sure about that, Hannah de Roo! All I want to do is hibernate and wake up in spring! But thank you beautiful.

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  2. Maybe we don't deserve beauty but beauty calls to us and is in us - beauty just is. Great post Faisal

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    1. Beauty, Paul, she has been my goddess...worthy of attention. I don't know about this being a great post...I just miss my friends - like you - and want to stay connected.

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  3. the banksias are related to our proteas? And yet such a different shape to our pincushions.

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    1. Dear Diana - your Proteas are grown much here in Australia, and yes, they're closely related to our Banksias ( Proteacea ). We're all Gwondwana here, aren't we - those of us in the south - and our plants are splendid!

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  4. The fire, risotto and red sound like a good idea. Though your winter seems light, having spent years where there are 2 seasons, and spring meaning summer increasing and fall meaning winter increasing!

    The design I am about to get back to will have hellebores...Banksia not a chance. Fun post.

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  5. I'm getting round to commenting so late that it's no longer winter. Even Ballaratt is probably hot today.Loved the elegant Victoriana in this post.

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    1. No trouble, Sue...I'm finding myself fairly lackadaisical these days...outer imperatives don't always grab me... Thank you for the comment. Ballarat can be so beautiful.

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  6. living there must be so different to Melb. I found your comment re outer imperatives thought provoking. Maybe we're all looking to find a balance between inner and outer imperatives?

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