I hate to admit it, but that’s how it is. Today has been an absolutely brilliant spring day. Had I not taken advantage of it to catch up with the gardening I would have felt really bad. Only one activity was permitted to take precedence over the garden today and that was my getting a haircut. Nothing can be relied upon more to restore a sense of order and control in life, so that had to be my first priority. (Ordering rituals are important, don’t you think?) Gardening, however, has occupied most of the day.
We have quite a large garden (tennis court size, I guess.) and it is important every year to make sure that the shrubs don’t grow so vigorously that they exclude the light from our neighbours’ gardens. Also, there are creepers on two walls, and if they are not disciplined regularly the place might disappear eventually under the greenery. When they begin to obscure the bedroom windows I know its is time to get out the ladders. Everything is now under control! (In the short term.)
One of the things that does need regular clipping, to prevent it from keeping light from the studio window, is a Judas tree. Although this has been in the garden throughout the twenty-odd years we’ve been here, I don’t remember bringing the blossom into the house before, as decoration. The scent is absolutely wonderful, and the beautiful pink flowers look lovely in the kitchen/dining room.
As you might expect, however, the day will not be art-free. This evening I head off to my weekly life drawing class, at the Ilkley Art School. I’m pleased also that I managed to send off in the post the publicity material for my forthcoming exhibition in Worcester Cathedral.