The "blossomest blossom"

Spirea "Bridal Wreath", (Spirea Arguta), is one of my favourite Spring flowers. I love the way the tiny flowers tumble down on long stems. I will probably blip it every year because I am so fond of it.

Looking at it today, I was reminded of the last interview given by Dennis Potter, the playwright, when he was dying of cancer. He knew that the Spring of 1994 was to be his last. When I heard him talk about the plum blossom that was outside his window, I had shivers running up and down my spine. Potter was not universally liked and could undoubtedly be acerbic and challenging in his writing and speech. He was certainly ahead of his time with some of the themes he explored.

Here was the dying man offering important insights and I have never forgotten it.

Today I finished mounting my homework. I soothed Arth, upset by our visit to the physio yesterday. I contacted the consultant's secretary to ask if I could have a scan to see just what is going on in that knee - waiting for a reply. I met up with the Wednesday walkers after they had completed "my" route from Wall.

Here is part of what Dennis Potter said in March 2004. He died in June.

". . . at this season, the blossom is out in full now, there in the west early. It's a plum tree, it looks like apple blossom but it's white, and looking at it, instead of saying "Oh that's nice blossom" ... last week looking at it through the window when I'm writing, I see it is the whitest, frothiest, blossomest blossom that there ever could be, and I can see it. Things are both more trivial than they ever were, and more important than they ever were, and the difference between the trivial and the important doesn't seem to matter. But the nowness of everything is absolutely wondrous, and if people could see that, you know. There's no way of telling you; you have to experience it, but the glory of it, if you like, the comfort of it, the reassurance ... not that I'm interested in reassuring people - bugger that. The fact is, if you see the present tense, boy do you see it! And boy can you celebrate it."