Saturday, May 4, 2013

The Beautiful Spring Came

Posts of the Week Follow-up: In my last post which also included the POTWs, I mentioned that if Suldog would repost his story about the lockdown in his neighbourhood of Watertown, Massachusetts, that I would link to it. He did and I have. Right here. Suldog sold this story to The Boston Globe but it has since become unavailable to non-paying visitors. You can read his firsthand account of what it felt like to be under lockdown while the police and SWAT teams searched for the remaining Boston Marathon bomber in his neighbourhood, street and home. Thank you for indulging my mini POTW so that I could include Suldog's A Day in Lockdown in Watertown.

Now, on to some spring photos and quotes.


The beautiful spring came; and when Nature resumes her loveliness, the human soul is apt to revive also. ~ Harriet Ann Jacobs


bud
Behold, my friends, the spring is come; the earth has gladly received the embraces of the sun, and we shall soon see the results of their love! ~Sitting Bull




sumac branch
I glanced out the window at the signs of spring. The sky was almost blue, the trees were almost budding, the sun was almost bright. ~ Millard Kaufman




gull2
Every year, back comes Spring, with nasty little birds yapping their fool heads off and the ground all mucked up with plants. ~ Dorothy Parker




new buds3
Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems. ~ Rainer Maria Rilke




mallard mrs2
Spring is the time of the year, when it is summer in the sun and winter in the shade. ~ Charles Dickens




new bud
No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. ~ Hal Borland

52 comments:

Cloudia said...

Oh your shots are among the best in blog land bar none!



Friendly ALOHA
from Waikiki
Comfort Spiral
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Kerry said...

Fuzzy buds=spring. Lovely, Hilary. I was very pleased that you asked Jim to re-post his piece, and so glad that he found a wider audience to read it. Remarkable.

Frank Baron said...

Good stuff.

Saw two Kingbirds in the field. :)

Jackie said...

I agree with Cloudia....your photography is beautiful!
And, I am very proud of Jim's writing that was published in The Boston Globe.

Rob-bear said...

Excellent pictures, especially the macros. Beautiful, indeed. I enjoy the way you add appropriate quotations to the pictures, too.

I read Jim's story when it was first available. "Gripping" is a good word to describe it.

Blessings and Bear hugs!
Bears Noting
Life in the Urban Forest (poetry)

Rob-bear said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ADRIAN said...

It has been a long time coming. I thought the trees were going to give this year a miss.

Unknown said...

The bird in-flight is terrific, and yes, I'd like to see that article. Thanks, Hilary! :)

Bob Bushell said...

I am filled with joy, spring has landed, woopee. Beautiful photos of spring, thanks Hilary.

Gail Dixon said...

Beautiful images of life and color and light! That Dorothy Parker was a pip, huh? Enjoyed all the quotes so much; many I had not heard/read before. Glad Suldog was able to repost his story. It is an interesting read for sure. Hope you have a great weekend!

Andy said...

With spring finally here my body has suddenly come perked up. Your photos express my feelings just perfect.

sage said...

It is a beautiful time of the year, today, the morning is gorgeous as I look out from the porch at the early light and the leaves just being to pop open.

Steve Gravano said...

Nice pairing of verse and photos. Spring has sprung in the north country!

Brian Miller said...

fuzzy new life...kind like our own little babes...its beautiful to see spring....

nice on suldog as well...

DJan said...

I agree with Cloudia, your pictures are some of the best in the WORLD! I love the fuzzy buds especially. :-)

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

Beautiful spring photos and quotes. I think Dorothy Parker needs a dose of Sitting Bull.

TexWisGirl said...

the dorothy parker quote made me laugh!!! love it! :)

and i LOVE your mallard hen reflection and flying gull. beautiful!!!

ellen abbott said...

love the emerging buds.

Tabor said...

Perfect dance between words and photos and glad that spring is now making an appearance in your area.

CiCi said...

Summer in the sun and winter in the shade about sums it up. One day here is warm and sunny and then we have hail and sleet. Yikes. Spring is not about to venture out in Nebraska yet.

VM Sehy Photography said...

Lovely shots Hilary. The duck is my favorite. I'll have to get out and get some shots of the ducks around here.

Kerri Farley said...

Thankfully Spring didn't skip it's turn....it almost seemed like it would for a while.
Lovely Images!

lime said...

all i can say is.....thank god it finally arrived!

stephen Hayes said...

Each one of these photographs shows a masterpiece of color and texture.

messymimi said...

Hooray for Spring! We had another cold snap, but it's not going to stop the inevitable.

larkswing said...

Lovely Spring shots. I sure needed to see these today. January weather has returned: chilly (40's tonight? in South Georgia in May???) and dreary grey rain. I suppose that it could be hot as hades, I will take this - as long as there are beautiful pictures to enjoy!

Ruth Hiebert said...

Beautiful captures of the beginnings of spring.Finally we can say that it feels like spring.

Red said...

All terrific quotes. I like the one about no season skips us. We needed that one this year.

Liz Mays said...

It's so wonderful to see the awakening!

Linda said...

Great close-up photos, and I love the ripples on the water!

Suldog said...

Thank you, love. And thank you to all who came and read.

As always, your photographic beauty is surpassed only by your own.

diane b said...

I like the way you show the buds pushing out from the branch. You are all excited about spring while we are getting cooler weather down under.

A Cuban In London said...

When I was in Cuba recently my wife and I noticed that our old camera was in its last throes. We'll probably purchase a new one soon. But the model I have in mind is not to just take photos on the go but to try to be as artistic as I can (amateurrishly) can. One of my inspirations for this decision is your blog. You and a group of other bloggers whose photos I adore have inspired me for a long time to go out there and try my hand at photography, an art I have always, always loved. I know I won't be half as good as you, but everytime I come here I find beauty and that motivates me a lot. Many thanks.

Greetings from London.

Indrani said...

Lovely focus again! Love the details you capture.

Betty Manousos said...

how inspiring!
i love spring and adore your photos. i really like that first one of the bud.

thank you my wonderful friend!

have a great week ahead~

Karen (formerly kcinnova) said...

SPRING!! :)

Off to read Suldog's post. Thank you!

Maggie May said...

Love the soaring bird and the fuzzy twigs!
Maggie x

Nuts in May

Sharon Wagner said...

The seagull shot is so perfect. And the quote is a different spring perspective. Ha!

Daryl said...

near and far ... and a wonderful read to boot

Anonymous said...

Amazing spring shots!

Crabby McSlacker said...

Oh my goodness, wish I could have taken you on our vacation with us as a photographer! If you can make little stickish branches look that stunning, just think what you could have done with waterfalls, sunsets, beaches, and Mai Tai's!

Anonymous said...

That Charles Dickens quote is so true!

Anonymous said...

Such beautiful images and quotes! I'm so glad you got Suldog to publish the post again.

holdingmoments said...

Perfect focus on these Hilary.

Anonymous said...

And thank goodness for it and how beautifully it is relfected in your posts! My Very favourite time of year by far. x

Along These Lines ... said...

Gulls coming your way - duck!

Lisa Gordon said...

Hilary, your spring photographs are so beautiful.
I love the light you have captured in each one, and the reflection of the duck is just perfection.

I wish you a wonderful day!

photowannabe said...

Delicious bits of Spring.
Your macro work is magnificent.
Thanks for providing the link.
With heavy heart I am off to read that post.

Anita said...

I love that you take the time to add meaning quotes to your photos; be they yours or all the famous people, who seem to feel as we do, with their gifts of poetry, verse and expression.

Thanks for the link to Suldog's. We should always save a place in our hearts for things that are heartbreaking, however, that bind us together.

EG CameraGirl said...

I especially love the Rainer Maria Rilke quote! And I smiled at the one by Hal Borland.

Pride In Photos Beauty said...

You have some beautiful macro shots here...dreamy.

SandyCarlson said...

What a luscious spring it is!