More Photos from the Garden

On Friday, after we came home from grocery shopping, Alexander and I were out in the garden, doing some of his favorite backyard activities -- sweeping the walkways, throwing oranges (what's the difference between an orange and a ball?), pulling snails off the stones, gathering up pine cones, and trying to make friends with the cats by saying "Meow!" every time he sees one of them -- when I noticed a distinct change in the air. The sky thickened and turned a yellowish tinge, and I thought I tasted dust. We eventually went inside and had our lunch, and we put the boys down for their naps, but as the afternoon went on, the wind picked up and blew with a steady force for the rest of the day, carrying with it a dusty film that seemed to coat everything. We shut all the windows and wondered what it was all about.

 

A quick internet search revealed that this wind was probably the "khamsin," or "sharav," a springtime wind that affects countries from North Africa up into the Middle East. The wind carries dust from the desert, and is usually hot and dry. While this wind wasn't particularly hot -- in fact, I think the temperature dropped -- it was indeed dusty and persistent. All afternoon I was mesmerized by the sounds of the wind, the odd look of the sky, and the whole concept of desert dust whipped up and brought to us here in Jerusalem. Whether or not it truly was the "khamsin" that we experienced, the wind definitely got my imagination going. I'm now trying to write a poem about it.

 

So this morning, when the sky was a perfect blue again, it was a joy to go out in the garden and enjoy it in the full sun. I couldn't resist posting a few more pictures of the flowers that are blooming all around the house. And more are coming! We're really enjoying the variety of plants that thrive in this climate and landscape.

 

Tomorrow we head toward the coast for a couple of days, to celebrate Passover with a cousin of Eric's, and to hopefully spend some time on the beach!