Purple Shamrock (Oxalis triangularis)

Solid grey cloud cover minimised the joy today. It was an uphill task anyway, as I had to tell Helena about the loss of a good friend's daughter, a wife and mother of two small children who she knows well.
RIP


I now realise that most viewers of my pictures seem, like me, to want colour and natural forms to brighten our wintry days. To that end, I was delighted to notice that my Purple Shamrock plant, which has a been a bit under par, since last summer, produced its first flowers today. Another set of buds is ready to flower too in a day or so.

The plant's location has been wandering according to my whims, as I tried to find its happiest position. I now know that this window sill where I shot the picture is it for now. It won't like the stronger sunshine of this south facing window for much longer, when the sun's rays shine with greater energy. But it has doubled in size in about three months, after being down to only a few transplanted tuberous roots and associated stems, last summer. The central heating keeps its toes warm too.

The updraft from the radiator beneath the window was subtly moving the leaves, and the flowers particularly. So I got out the tripod and played a bit in the last of the natural light. I only had a few minutes as the light was rapidly dropping, as if one stop at a time.

I have just read this in a book of Helena's that I picked up by chance this afternoon. It is from the frontispiece of The Wise Virgin - the missing link between men and women, by Annie Wilson. The blurb says The Wise Virgin is a new phenomenon - the woman who combines focused consciousness with an intuitive connection with the natural world.


'There was a young man who said 'Though
it seems that I know that I know
What I would like to see
Is th 'I' that knows me
When I know that I know that I know.''

Alan Watts in 'The Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are'

ps
John Otway, who might have been blipped yesterday, was magnificent last night. I cried with laughter. A brilliant eccentric who I think everyone should see at least once. He keeps the sense of performance from the Music Hall era, combined with a surrealistic bent. You can find 'Really free' and other oddments on Youtube. He is no longer working with Wild Willy Barrett.