Expectations

The theme of late March at The Acres is "Expectations." Not my favorite theme--makes patience a labor of love. Once the orchard iris, aconite, snowdrops, Lenten roses, and crocus show up, there's a break in the "action." (Some crocus will keep popping up for awhile. They are the masters of surprise. One morning walk--nothing. Afternoon walk, crocus parties. No social distancing among those gorgeous rascals.) The tulips come up, but they are just a tease. Their early rising is just a reminder that it's time to feed the iris. The daffodils come up, bud, and then say, "I'll just wait a little while, thank you. You want flowers, send some sunshine." Now, how am I supposed to control that? Hyacinth always poke their heads out as well, even look as if they are ready to bloom, but they just linger at ground level for awhile. The iris, of course, have me thinking in late February and early March that I'll be lucky to have a bloom or two of my favorites--but it's not looking good. And then, a burst of growth. Up they come, and the old man's expectations soar. They must be keeping an eye on the tulips. See if they're up yet. But------I still have to wait until May for any blooms; maybe a dwarf iris or two will beat the rush in late April. Maybe. Six weeks of expectations! Expectations, expectations, expectations!? What's an old impatient man to do? Pray for a little sunshine. Feed the iris. And, oh yeah, wait.

And I wonder when the goldfish will bloom this spring?