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Sunday, March 18, 2012

Ah, crocuses!

This is the first year, that I have had crocuses in my rooftop garden. I find them to be a sweet looking flower and that their brilliant green foliage (which is enhanced with white "pin stripes") is also awesome.

A few of my crocuses can be seen in the images posted below, and these varieties were planted this past November within the large containers where my Actinida kolomikta and Actimida AKA Kiwi Vines as well as my Continus Coggygria AKA Smoke Bush live respectively. 

Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
Some of my Crocuses Sharing Digs with my Actinida kolomikta and Actimida 
Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
Going Solo (View of my Crocuses Sharing Digs my Continus Coggygria)

For me, the crocuses exude joy and their playful nature makes me wonder why I waited until this past November to include them in my garden. These little flowers with their pin striped foliage (although I've never heard anyone else refer to their leaves with this particular description), have caused folks from all walks of life to be inspired to include them in their prose.
In his poem, The Year's AwakeningThomas Hardy wrote:

"How do you know, deep underground,
Hid in your bed from sight and sound,
Without a turn in temperature,
With weather life can scarce endure,
That light has won a fraction's strength,
And day put on some moments' length,
Whereof in merest rote will come,
Weeks hence, mild airs that do not numb;
O crocus root, how do you know, 
How do you know?"

And, like Hardy, I marvel at the crocuses' presence, as well as their resilience, and I take pictures of them as one does with a new born child; ever conscious that each moment is unique, short-lived and precious. 

Perhaps, dear reader, you might have also surmised this from your own experience with these flowers or from this image which I am including below:
Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
My Crocuses Sharing Digs With My Actinida kolomikta and Actimida  
When I see my crocuses closing their petals to take a nap; or to protect their insides from colder temperatures, wind and heavy rain (such as they are doing in the image posted above), I sometimes think of the meaning of my surname which is Youngquist, a Swedish name, that comes from a plant that can survive under any condition. As for me, I am a bit weary of seeing that indeed I can survive under adverse conditions, and, in my whimsical moments, I wonder if my crocuses feel the same way about being survivors.

Sometimes it seems it would be nice to have a name that translated into one who survives best under cushy conditions. In any event, my crocuses seem to take life as it comes, and they appear to enjoy their moments in the sun, as seen in the image below of two of them mugging for the camera. 

Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
My Crocuses Sharing Digs with my Continus Coggygria 
The feelings, reactions and inspiration that crocuses can cause seem to be as varied as the crocuses themselves.

For example, Raymond Carver has quite a different "take" on the sweet flower than that of Thomas Hardy. In his poem, Two Worlds, Carver "weighs in" on on crocuses with the following:

"In air heavy,
with odor of crocuses,

sensual smell of crocuses,
I watch a lemon sun disappear,

a sea change blue
to olive black.

I watch lighting leap from Asia as
sleeping.

my love stirs and breathes and
sleeps again,

part of this world and yet 
part that."

Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
My Crocuses Sharing Digs With My Actinida kolomikta and Actimida  View One
Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
My Crocuses Sharing Digs With My Actinida kolomikta and Actimida  View  Two
Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
My Crocuses Sharing Digs With My Continus Coggygria View One
Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in a rooftop urban garden in New York City, my story is told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The book includes hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.  Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11
My Crocuses Sharing Digs With My Continus Coggygria View  Two
And Joni Mitchel was also inspired by crocuses as evident by the following lyrics:

" . . .  flowers cannot fade her
Call her green for the children who've made her
Little green, be a gypsy dancer
He went to California
Hearing that everything's warmer there
So you write him a letter and say "Her eyes are blue"
He sends you a poem and she's lost to you
Little green he's a non-conformer
Just a little green
Like the color when the spring is born
There'll be crocuses to bring to school tomorrow
Just a little green
Like the nights when the Northern lights perform
There'll be icicles and birthday clothes
And sometimes there'll be sorrow
Child with a child pretending
Weary of lies you are sending home
So you sign all the papers in the family name
You're sad and you're sorry but you're not ashamed
Little green have a happy ending
Just a little green
Like the color when the spring is born
There'll be crocuses to bring to school tomorrow
Just a little green
Like the nights when the Northern lights perform
There'll be icicles and birthday clothes
And sometimes there'll be sorrow."


-----
ADDENDUM: Crocuses are discussed in volume one of my Words In Our Beak book series.


Here's the purchase info:

Volume One: ISBN: 9780996378529

Book Seller Info: http://bit.ly/2AFZDCz
Barnes & Noble On-Line: http://bit.ly/2AAnB26
book culture On Columbus (a bookstore on the UWS in NYC): http://bit.ly/2FsC1Uf

Volume Two: ISBN: 9780996378536
Book Seller Info: http://bit.ly/2q75g8e
Barnes & Noble On-Line: http://bit.ly/2G65m6H

ANOTHER ADDENDUM: VOLUME THREE OF THE SERIES...


MY BOOK SERIES

...WAS PUBLISHED IN NOVEMBER 2018. 

HERE ARE THE DETAILS:
Volume Three: ISBN: 978099637853
Now available on Amazon @ https://amzn.to/2IYkmpA and can be ordered from any place selling books by giving them the title and/or ISBN which is 978099637853

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