Text and images Britt-Arnhild Wigum Lindland
The rainbow play an important part during Lent for me. Readers of my book will know a lot about it, and if you have read my blog for some years you will also know some.
Lent has seven weeks, the rainbow has seven colours - one colour for each week.
The first week I planted paprika seeds, red, the second week tagetes, orange. Tiny plants are sprouting, sign of spring, of hope in all this falling snow. A couple of nights ago I decided it was time to buy more seeds, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.......I want the whole rainbow in my garden.
After coffee and the news at 7pm, Terje and I drove over to the closest garden center, packets of seeds and planting soil on our shopping list.
I gathered what I needed, and then we decided to walk around a little, enjoying, gathering ideas for The Blue Garden.........when we suddenly came to a rack of camellia plants! Camellias in Norway? Is that possible? The prize tag showed an almost impossible prize, but there was no way around. I simply had to have a camellia!
I saw my first camellia in Copenhagen a few years ago, in Tage Andersen's shop, and was hooked there and then. I wrote blog posts about my passion, and one time a dear blog reader, Debbie in California, sent me a camellia seed (or is it called a nut?). I tried to plant it, without luck, and had to tell myself that camellias for me had to be enjoyed on travels, through photos, in my dreams.
Untill now. Just now there is a camellia blooming out in our hallway, hopefully the temepratures there are the best for it.
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A link to one of my posts from Tage Andersen's flower gallery in Copenhagen
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Two dear friends came to my mind in the garden center when I found the camellias - Debbie in California, Preben in Copenhagen who first showed me Tage Andersen's shop.
When we came home from the garden center the other night I opened my computer - to find a comment in my blog from Debbie. Coincidence?
This morning a message from Preben found its way to my heart from my facebook wall - the snowdrops have been blooming here in Copenhagen for a few weeks now. They remind me of you and Our Lord! Coincidence? (Why me and the Lord you might ask? :-) Well, that's about a legend I wrote, in Norwegian, about God giving colour to the snow with the help of the small snowdrops. The legend, printed and handsewn/binded was my Christmas gift to family and a few close friends last Christmas.)
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Today's memory post - socks and camellias in London February 2009
I packed three pairs of socks in my suitcase. And yarn for more sock. The first pair was given away already in Oslo, the second pair was meant for Roz, the third pair was for my friend Carol whom I met at Leicester Square Thursday afternoon, and with whom I spent a wonderful afternoon and evening browsing Covent Garden market, eating at Bella Italia, enjoying Phantom of the Opera.
I never met Roz, and I didn't want to bring the pair of socks with me back to Norway, so what to do? I knitted during the conference. One day one of the ladies came over to my table. "Your socks are so beautiful. I wish I had a pair. Then I could keep my feet warm when I work." "So please tell me, what do you do for working?" "I sell sausages outdoors, and it is so cold now with the snow we've had this winter." The second pair of socks got a new owner there and then.
I wanted to photograph the socks I knitted in London while I still was in London, but I kept on forgetting. All untill the last day, on my way to Paddington Station and the Heathrow Express. Struggling with a heavy suitcase, again I bought too many books, I passed a small square, Sussex Garden, and I knew it was my last possibility to photograph the socks. Businessmen on their way to work almost forgot to swallow their coffee on the go - a crazy woman in Sussex Gardens photographing socks! But nobody knew me, so I just kept on with my task......
Leaving the garden I saw a blooming rose bush near the gate. Roses in February? I took a closer look and relaised it wasn't roses at all. So what could it be? Can it be a Camelia? Debbie, please help me, is this a camelia?
I had to stop and find the socks once more. Socks in the camelia bush!
