Stormy weather nearly prevented Mei-Shun from visiting a hair salon nearby Tokyo Station yesterday. Since Ms. Scarlet is under repair, Shin’s car descended from beloved father of his wife helped her to get on a train. She dropped in a department store after a haircut, purchased some plates for dinner. Then an e-mail message came from him asking where she was. Yes, let’s go home together.
We have 穀雨=koku-yu, the 6th and last of spring 二十四節気 today. Stormy weekend never hurt our garden flowers in pure white, while wild wisteria high on the top of a camphor tree. And yes, “backyard” gingko was cut toward railing of upstairs verandah, in order to avoid spreading too much leaves in autumn, mom-in-law told Shin and Mei-Shun.
Our fiscal 2021 starts from today, meaning year end of 2020 yesterday. Mademoiselle Vert seems to know it, greeted Mei-Shun with her first kissing bud in the morning. Thanks a lot, honey, you are so clever that waited for the best timing to bloom. Or did Momo-chan contact you to hand an eye-comforting batten? “Yes mom, great to see you, dad and Mikan-chan again.”
With lunar February started from Saturday, we would expect the third crescent tonight. A bit too soon to celebrate Peach Festival on the same calendar, yet Mei-Shun is really happy to see Momo-chan, our garden princess prepare spring dance full of bright pink buds — her first flowers opened yesterday in stormy wind. Following fruit also makes this rider of weight-rolling-coaster content in both mouth and eyes.
Mei-Shun cut elder Princess Cymby today. An instruction to grow this breed recommends to do so after blossom for 80 – 90 days, in order to keep bulbs healthy. Younger lady would therefore reside in her throne toward April. She is really like an angel with wings of sunlight — oh, here comes another one whose coat is made of moonlight.
Oh? Who is lying behind?
Or snow on the roof floor. Mei-Shun cleaned it yesterday to remove dust and fallen leaves from little drains. How long did she take from previous time? At least a whole year before, when an awful pool appeared there to flow down toward the ceiling of Shin’s study. Actually, some of plugholes were in danger. Such strainers were difficult to move, stuck with dry mud made of … oh, fragments of worn flooring!
Princesses cheered MS up.
We have 冬至=toji, the 4th of winter 二十四節気 today. That means the longest night in northern hemisphere, makes Mei-Shun rush to western window at dusk to see Jupiter and Saturn float side by side. There they are, yet quite difficult to recognize the further latter, who finds himself a bit too close to the former. And oh, Princess Cymby finally opened 3 flowers; one on the top, 2 just next to each other.
Morning sunlight comes into our living room later and later these days. It sometimes seems like 初日の出=hatsu-hinode, the first sunrise of a new year for Shin and Mei-Shun which ascends from a neighbor’s rooftop. Pretty round shapes on the wall resemble fireworks on 3rd, Culture Day in the evening. The wife rushed upward the roof floor to find enormous flowers in the sky.
吐玉泉 Fountain is one of the most favorite places to visit for Shin and Mei-Shun. Clear water continues to come up to run around a bluish white well curb made of marble, leave to become a little fall. So it goes as we have 寒露=kanro, the 5th of autumnal 二十四節気 today. It means cold dewdrops on leaves of grass in the field, where she cannot go out to see lovely horseies.
Mei-Shun visited her mother’s place after 3 months: August saw them in 草津. Handmade delicacy following below welcomed the former, although a bit delayed. And oh, it was the first time for her to meet this bushclover in full blossom, descended from the late grandma of mom’s side. She immediately understood why it is one of the most popular autumnal flowers.
meishunkikunoe 