A friend has recently returned from Japan and was enthusing about the cherry blossom.
So when Mr L and I went for a walk this afternoon, I took some photos of the local equivalent.
Granted, it would have looked better on Saturday, when we had all-day blue skies.
And I dare say that Japan offers other exotic attractions not so evident in suburban Edinburgh.
In a few days the blossom will start to coat the pavements in pink, which is slippery if it rains. But still, it's all very pretty at the moment.
Earlier today I was with friends and one of them said (in the context of one of those cheery friends-with-cancer conversations that one has at this age), "I've had a fabulous life, so..." . And I was somewhat startled by her wording. I have myself been fortunate in various standard ways and nothing tragic has happened (yet). I'm grateful for friends and family, enjoyed my work most of the time and feel lucky to live in a peaceful, pleasant place with a temperate climate. But I hadn't ever thought of describing my life as "fabulous". My friend was a teacher too, so we're not talking about film star fame or riches.
I suppose it's obvious - if you tell yourself that your life is fabulous, it's more likely to seem so. Perhaps I'll try it. "In This Fabulous Life"?
"Fabulous Life" does sound a bit Hello Magazine doesn`t it? I`ll settle for a fortunate one, with fingers crossed tightly behind my back!
ReplyDeleteI think your Edinburgh cherry blossoms are just as beautiful as those you would find in Japan ( not that I have been to Japan...). Yours look wonderful and must cheer up the lives of everyone nearby. Our cherry blossoms are dropping now, being a bit further south, so there are petals in puddles and in drifts across the grass.
If my life were indeed a fable I suppose I would be obliged to draw a moral from it, and I'm not quite ready to do that yet...
ReplyDeleteI might have seen her! I have to agree that one close up cherry is just as lovely as the next. I feel the same way about autumn colour. I thought I wanted to see the fall colour in the US but one day I stood in front of a liquidamber tree in my local park and it had every colour from yellow to purple on its leaves and I wondered if the experience could really be aesthetically any better by travelling thousands of miles to get it.
ReplyDeleteYes!!! It IS a FABULOUS life!!! Hello! You live in SCOTLAND!!!! WAY WAY WAY better than where I live. I try to tell myself that I live in a pretty good place (and it probably is, compared to some), but it can't compare to EDINBURGH!!!! And, if that weren't enough, your trees are blooming already -- we have just a little tinge of green so far.
ReplyDeleteI think it is all about perception.
ReplyDeleteI had what most would consider a tough start, losing first one parent then another while I was still young, but I consider myself to be lucky - to have survived thanks to older siblings who looked after me until I was 18.
I am way over the ages at which my parents died, so regard every year now as a bonus.
My brother used to tell me that everything is relative, and that is so true.
I loved seeing all this pink. I don't know how they compared to Japan, but honestly, I rather go to your part of the world anyway.
ReplyDeleteFabulous life statements do cause one to think. Perspectives change given our circumstances in life. I think despite the many set backs I've had, I'd have to say my life has been good, very good. And the best part for me is that it has been very interesting. I like that. It didn't have to be fabulous, but it has been satisfying.
But how lovely that your friend thinks of her life as fabulous. If it's anything like as rich in texture, love, detail and beauty as yours seems to be then I don't think it is hyperbole.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we're all fabulous!! I hope she continues to be fabulous despite her illness. L xx
Cherry blossom is beautiful anywhere, regardless of where it is growing. Japan have made it a cultural thing and deservedly so, but yours is no less beautiful. I've seen the occasional cherry blossom tree here, but they are certainly not in the average Australian garden or street.
ReplyDeletePerhaps your friend didn't mean her description of a fabulous life to sound so 'over the top'. I sometimes start to describe something as 'fabulous' but catch myself up, because it is one of those words which is used far too often in the wrong context. One of my friends once commented that I'd been very unlucky in my life, and I was shocked. I think I've been very blessed!
Your trees are no less beautiful than those in Japan with the added advantage of being close to home.
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