Obsession

I'm obsessed with the color yellow!!

Yellow and white were about the only colors I could choose from to photograph this summer seeing as the grasshoppers ate the purples and pinks of my flowers; and the vegetable garden was all I had left (what they didn't eat that is).

Couple that with the fact once again I haven't felt hunky dory this summer and the intense yellow was cheery, bright, and inviting. Early in the mornings, I find myself kissing my husband goodbye and still clad in my pajamas; slipping my shoes on and grabbing my camera. The allure of the garden too strong to resist.

At this hour, Sir Reginald Stewart, our garden cat, is making his final patrol of the yard before his long nap and he joins me as I tip toe through the plants peering in between the leaves to appraise the new blossoms.

For each morning, new squash and pumpkin blooms unfurl and then fade as the day advances.

These early morning strolls were only a divertissement until I brushed aside some leaves to disclose a blossom over ten inches in size. My divertissement became an obsession as more and more appeared in the days to follow.

Suddenly, entering the garden was like being transported to an exotic island, an oasis on the Wyoming plains where the grass is rapidly expiring. The green seeping away into a pale sickly yellow.

The lush view refreshes my soul and as the sun rises, the cool air is still. The streets quiet. The pullets stir. Their hushed, comforting murmurs a reassurance that all is well - at least in this corner of the world.

As the sun' intensify, it's rays stretching across the garden, the bumble bees tucked inside the blossoms rouse. Their days work begins and soon their wearing a dusty coat of pollen. My restless mind forms questions as my eyes follow their flight.

What will they prefer the female or male blossoms?

It was the female. Shielded inside her petals, appendages rose up like the water in a fountain. The bumble bees drank from the base, a pool of nectar.

It wasn't just the squash and pumpkin blossoms that held my gaze but the sun flowers strewn throughout the garden.

Large bold top blossoms crown the plant.

Smaller versions scattering down the stalk as if they were its children.

Some, of their lower blossoms appearing to be only distant cousins.

I almost forgot to mention the muffins. Kirk wasn't impressed with the blackberry ones either. He needs to have his taste buds examined as I tried one today and it was heavenly.