Abundance

I finally broke free of my own 4 walls today and took a trip up to the allotment for the first time in 2 weeks. 14 days of fretting and fussing over what was going on without me. I walked along the meandering path past other people's plots, ducked under the branch of a damson weighted down by its own fruit, and navigated the squelchy bit by one of the site taps.

I was momentarily distracted by the sight of those perfectly formed pale pink sweet peas you can see above, that (calloo calay) I could actually smell. And then I looked up to see this...

All this...abundance.

It was a veritable dazzling of green, of ripening. Of colour and sunshine. Of, yes, weeds and over-long grass but also spinach, courgettes, wineberries, flowers. 

Of tiny tomatoes nestling under big green leaves. Of long french beans drooping under their own weight. Of leeks that have tripled in size and beetroot that are pushing their way out of the soil. 

Over on the wild oregano, there was a dance of bees, butterflies and other pollinators. It was joyful, spontaneously choreographed, a hum and bustle of activity. 

I don’t mind telling you that I nearly cried at the sight, sound and smell of it all. 

Yes there is much work to be done to catch up with myself but there is so much more to sit and marvel at. If you need me this summer, this is where I’ll be.