Spring in full flower in Northern California…

From my garden in the cooler San Francisco bay area

emerging apples from early spring blossoms…

Ripening cherries…

foxglove’s enticing hues and patterns…

Poppies and erigeron fronting an espaliered apple tree. Having a smallish garden,

I love placing fruit trees amidst roses and perennials. After my grandfather died,

my uncle, a polio survivor, had taken over the daily working of the ranch and orchards,

and I remember how keen he was on helping me pick out my first fruit tree, an espaliered

Bosc pear. He loved watching John Wayne westerns, and had equally as much swagger,

toughness, and kindness… He is one of many I miss this weekend…

Wide open canopy of a walnut grove at my mother’s ranch in the San Joaquin

valley less than two hours drive east into the heart of California…

I used to spend summers barefoot in these orchards, or up at dawn to grade

pears and peaches that were being sent off to markets or the local cannery…

My mother still has memories of walking these fields with her dad.

Memories can be so bittersweet…