The first flowers to grace the new marble island–peonies.
I’m still in the midst of a bit of renovation mess and frustrated by delays and mishaps, but then today I happened to notice this still life comprised simply of these floral beauties, a stack of dinner plates waiting to be put away and the remains of our Sunday morning tradition–cappuccinos and chocolate croissants. Just the few moments it took me to grab my camera and capture this transported me to another state of being far away from renovation woes and to-do lists.
—My own little island sanctuary you might say.
Peonies
This morning the green fists of the peonies are getting ready
to break my heart
as the sun rises,
as the sun strokes them with his old, buttery fingers
and they open—
pools of lace,
white and pink—
and all day the black ants climb over them,
boring their deep and mysterious holes
into the curls,
craving the sweet sap,
taking it away
to their dark, underground cities—
and all day
under the shifty wind,
as in a dance to the great wedding,
the flowers bend their bright bodies,
and tip their fragrance to the air,
and rise,
their red stems holding
all that dampness and recklessness
gladly and lightly,
and there it is again—
beauty the brave, the exemplary,
blazing open.
Do you love this world?
Do you cherish your humble and silky life?
Do you adore the green grass, with its terror beneath?
Do you also hurry, half-dressed and barefoot, into the garden,
and softly,
exclaiming of their dearness,
fill your arms with the white and pink flowers,
with their honeyed heaviness,
their lush trembling,
their eagerness
to be wild and perfect for a moment, before they are
I was at a girlfriend's home last evening for dinner and the 1st thing I noticed were the giant peonies, pale pink, she had sitting center stage. After that, everything was wonderful. xx's
Beautiful! The light that falls through the vase does it all.. and you noticed it!! Thank you! Peonies are my birthday flowers. So thank you for that too on this day.
Ingrid
Lovely…can't wait to see pics of the renovation! T
Lovely…can't wait to see pics of the renovation! T
Tiffany, (Is this the Mrs. T. Fro that I know?!) …I can't wait to see the renovation pictures too. Mostly because it will mean that I have many projects completed and everything camera-ready. 🙂 I'm doing the island finish right now (or should be as I write this)–anyway, thanks for stopping by. Hope you are well. xo~LeAnn
Dear Ingrid, Was it just your birthday? If so, hope it was a great one for you! I'm happy to see you made it to linen and lavender! Thank you for your comment. I agree. The light coming through the vase is everything and is what caught my eye, thankfully. I really felt refreshed and motivated to tackle the rest of the projects for the day after that. Hope to see you here again soon! xo~LeAnn
Hello, Marsha. Isn't amazing how flowers can impact your mood and elevate the energy in a room? I once dated someone who told me he thought keeping fresh flowers in the house was a waste of time and money, if you can believe that. –(Not sure why I dated him at all after that, actually!) We are still marveling at those same peonies in the photo above. Every morning they greet us and set the tone for the day. Love them! xo~LeAnn
I was at a girlfriend's home last evening for dinner and the 1st thing I noticed were the giant peonies, pale pink, she had sitting center stage. After that, everything was wonderful. xx's
Beautiful! The light that falls through the vase does it all.. and you noticed it!! Thank you! Peonies are my birthday flowers. So thank you for that too on this day.
Ingrid
Lovely…can't wait to see pics of the renovation! T
Lovely…can't wait to see pics of the renovation!
T
Tiffany,
(Is this the Mrs. T. Fro that I know?!) …I can't wait to see the renovation pictures too. Mostly because it will mean that I have many projects completed and everything camera-ready. 🙂 I'm doing the island finish right now (or should be as I write this)–anyway, thanks for stopping by. Hope you are well. xo~LeAnn
Dear Ingrid,
Was it just your birthday? If so, hope it was a great one for you! I'm happy to see you made it to linen and lavender! Thank you for your comment. I agree. The light coming through the vase is everything and is what caught my eye, thankfully. I really felt refreshed and motivated to tackle the rest of the projects for the day after that.
Hope to see you here again soon! xo~LeAnn
Hello, Marsha. Isn't amazing how flowers can impact your mood and elevate the energy in a room? I once dated someone who told me he thought keeping fresh flowers in the house was a waste of time and money, if you can believe that. –(Not sure why I dated him at all after that, actually!)
We are still marveling at those same peonies in the photo above. Every morning they greet us and set the tone for the day. Love them! xo~LeAnn