Full pink moon

April's full Moon rises tomorrow morning.  It is known as the Full Pink Moon, Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and the Fish Moon.

Easter has always been tied to the moon because the Jewish calendar is based on the cycles of the moon. This means that Easter could fall on any day of the week. In 325 at the Council of Nicaea, the Bishops worked out an agreement that Easter would always be observed on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox. 

Good Friday is a day of fasting for many Christians around the world, although hot cross buns for breakfast are the one traditional luxury.  I wish I had one right now!  But somehow, eating meat does not seem right today. I think I'll make plain pasta with tomatoes and olives for dinner.  Well, simple can still be tasty. 

Please keep John's wonderful parents in your thoughts this Easter.  His dad has been in the hospital fighting off some serious flu complications.  Each day brings us little signs of improvement and hope he will soon be home again with Wilda.

 John Sr. and Wilda

Dawn

Dawn revisited
by- Rita Dove

Imagine you wake up
with a second chance: The blue jay
hawks his pretty wares
and the oak still stands, spreading
glorious shade. If you don’t look back,
the future never happens.
How good to rise in sunlight,
in the prodigal smell of biscuits -
eggs and sausage on the grill.
The whole sky is yours
to write on, blown open
to a blank page. Come on,
shake a leg! You’ll never know
who’s down there, frying those eggs,
if you don’t get up and see.

April Fools

Wouldn't you know it?  This is the most excitement we've seen in the mountains all winter.   Snoqualmie Pass was closed last night because of heavy snow,  and chains are required this morning for all the unfortunates who have to drive over it.  The ski areas are talking about opening this weekend.

Oh boy. Winter finally arrives just in time for our Easter trip over the mountains. Weather Underground is saying 1-2 inches of snow in Twisp on Monday.  Really?

Down here in the lowlands, the flowers are waving in the wind, between spells of drenching rain and blazing sunlight.  I took this picture yesterday with my new Sony Cyber-shot camera, a nice birthday present from John.

I'll try not to drop it on its poor face, like my old Sony I banged around on horses and in purses. With everyone using their cell phones now to take pictures, who knows how much longer we'll be able to buy these real cameras?  They don't do selfies.  In the world of camera sales it's all gloom and doom. 

This lovely flower is an anemone that comes back like a miracle every spring.  I don't know how I've avoided accidentally digging it up over the years.  The blue color is about as perfect as it gets in nature.

"Anemone" means "daughter of the wind" in Greek, and in mythology the flower was created by the goddess Venus when she sprinkled nectar on the body of her dead lover Adonis.

From John Keats:

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases, it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er-darkened ways
Made of our searching; yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits.

Endymion
Book 1

Happy Birthday

I'd take a birthday a week,  just for this from Nova and Maya. 

March 30

Today is "National I Am in Control Day." On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was wounded in an assassination attempt.  It was my birthday so I remember exactly what we were doing when the news came over the car radio.

Oh dear, with The Gipper down, confusion ruled at the White House.  Secretary of State Alexander Haig told the press "I am in control here," and the words were immediately and unfortunately taken out of context.  The political uproar eventually led to his resignation.

But of course that's all ancient history, along with driving down the road moping about "getting old" at age 31.

Gimme my senior discount!

March winds down

If a task is once begun

Never leave it till its done.

Be the labor great or small

Do your best or not at all.

Oh, yesterday was beautiful day.  It hit 70 in Seattle, the warmest of the year so far.  I worked outside and then John mowed after work, good thing, because rain is back for the weekend.

I'm grateful for his lawn mowing service.  I don't mind slashing around with my excellent new weed eater, but mowing is a big job, winding around flower beds and other obstacles.  John says it's about 4,000 steps according to his FitBit, a couple of miles of mowing, I guess. That job takes the place of his afternoon walk.

He was rewarded with a special spring dinner, though.  I bought some scrappy looking lamb "steaks" and cut all the morsels of meat off the bone, marinated them and made grilled kabobs. With homemade hummus and couscous on the side. 

The spring garden is so pretty and lush outside the bedroom window, which was wide open for a while yesterday.  There are just a couple windows here where a person can look out without seeing other houses or power lines. These little views are precious.

No concerts, no activities this weekend.  I was going to take a "granny square class" at a yarn shop in north Seattle, but just heard on the news it's going to be traffic gridlock trying to get around Seattle with several main highways (including the Alaska Way Viaduct) closed for construction.  Maybe I'll crochet at home on Palm Sunday afternoon.  Have a good weekend!