Romancing the Genres: Favorite time or the year

While I love every season and change during the year, I would have to say my favorite time of the year is late spring, early summer.

This is when the wildflowers start blooming and the weather is warm enough to go on long hikes or ride my horse, but the snakes haven't come out yet.

I love the new greens that appear on the sage, the rabbit brush, and the grasses. Some weeds. I don't like some of those but they have their uses too. Except for the goatheads. Those plants are nasty when they are green and even nastier when they dry out and die.

I love walking the hills and taking photos of the Yellow Bell, Wild Flax, Paintbrush, Phlox, Mariposa Lily, Blazing Star, Lupine, and Buttercups. I know spring is here when the tiny little heads of the buttercups start showing up on the hills. Usually on the south-facing ridges first.

phlox

Then I'll start seeing the phlox, yellow bell, and mariposa lily. Later as it warms a little more the paintbrush, wild flax, and lupine show up. The last to make its appearance is the blazing star. And there aren't very many of them that I've seen around here. Only one spot and it is along the side of our county road.

Early summer means more time to ride my horse and ride with my daughter and grandchildren. They have just started the irrigation and I haven't begun to take off to book events too heavily yet. And the weather is still decent. Not too hot during the day so rides and walks can happen any time during the day.

Later in the summer when it gets hot, I get up early to walk or ride, before the day gets too hot.

Getting ready to ride.

As a child, I liked to hike the hills around our farm to find the first buttercup in the spring. Where I lived, we had winter from late October till sometimes May so finding a buttercup meant the end of winter and the beginning of spring and riding my horse.

Buttercup

Yes, I equate the sunny warmer weather with getting on a horse and riding. As teenager, there were many summer days, I'd get up in the morning, do my chores, pack a lunch, and take off up the mountain. Many times I didn't come back until I had to do my chores and make dinner. Or my brothers and I would go to what we called "the swimming hole" and swim in the river for several hours in the afternoon. The swimming hole was a large lazy curve in the Lostine River on our property. No adults. Just us cooling off and having a good time.

I would have to say, while I loved school and learning, I did yearn for the freedom of summer.