Tag Archives: spring

Spring’s Floral Merriment

The Earth laughs in flowers

Ralph Waldo Emerson

and the effervescent stream rushing past joins in the chorus.

Spring Cuteness, Feathered Edition

Spring cuteness has arrived in my corner of Michigan.

Like a Child that Knows Poems by Heart

“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.”
Rainier Rilke

Michigan is once again alive with that striking yellow-green of early May and the swirling sounds of swollen creeks. Fleming Creek flows, rapidly now, through a woods near University of Michigan’s Matthaei Gardens.

Fleming Creek, Michigan

Swirling of Swollen Creeks

Early Spring, as Michigan comes to life with a renewal of yellow-green foliage and the playful melodies of swollen creeks rushing past. This stream is not far from me, near the University of Michigan’s prolific Matthaei Gardens.

Fleming Creek, Michigan

April’s Uncertain Glory

O, how this spring of love resembleth
The uncertain glory of an April day;
Which now shows all the beauty of the sun,
And by and by a cloud takes all away.

Wiliam Shakespeare, Two Gentlemen of Verona

While the Bard never set foot in Michigan, his verse about April’s changing skies sounds a familiar note. Spring’s greenery has bravely made an appearance here and an amiable sun warmed our weekend, but today’s snow shows that winter has not yet lost its grip.

Seven Lakes, Michigan

Reclamation

This river glides by you, playing a cheerful melody beneath the Spring sun, and flows on its journey to meet its big brother, the Detroit River.

The stream’s moniker, River Rouge, speaks of this area’s French history and the river’s color when filled with silt in Springs gone by. I remember not long ago this river was clogged with pollutants from the suburban Detroit communities along its course and standing near it would expose you to various and sundry foul odors. Newspaper articles skeptically asked if the river would ever recover. Since then, however, the River Rouge has been a reclamation project for Michigan’s environmental efforts. Now, though the project to improve water quality continues, the River Rouge is a pleasant interlude on a fine Spring day’s hike.

River Rouge, Michigan

Momentary as a Sound

Making it momentary as a sound,
Swift as a shadow, short as any dream.

–Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Spring is close enough to touch here in Michigan, but greenery is yet a few warm days off.

Newburgh Lake, Michigan

Spring, Season of Renewal

Spring arrives today, and though its verdant touches are still a few weeks off for my corner of Michigan, the season of renewal will be especially welcome this year.

Fleming Creek, Michigan

Photo Challenge: Great Lakes’ Humble Beginnings

In the Great Lakes state, there is an abundance of liquid attractions. But, even Lake Superior, which could easily pass for a freshwater inland sea, has its humble beginnings in laughing springs and rippling brooks. A few of Michigan’s modest tributaries for your viewing enjoyment.

Photo Challenge: Liquid