Sunday, March 22, 2015

A Springtime Story of Grandeur and Glory

Daisies arrive on the patio, completely unexpected.

Between marble columns,
burnt orange daisies secure a
 hot spot in the siesta mid-day sun,
to bask in the warmth of its healing
 rays - a spritz of springtime therapy
 after withering away from winter's malaise.


A bubble of almond blossoms
bursts on to the scene, waking
 olive trees and buttercups bored
 with the usual. It shocks the serene by
splashing some rosy white on the green
  and suddenly, the meadow looks awesome!


From rooftop ruins, lemony daisies sprout
between wide cracks in the sandy stone,
cheery, open - air dwellers of a centuries
  old home, which shows no traces of its 
'once upon a time' life. A structural array
  of climatic strife, this abode, a tragic 
example of 'open concept' design, is, 
alas, a model of rubble in rocky decline.


 On ground level, a red poppy stands 
alone, in a field of cliquey colour.
Crepe paper frail, its silky petals
shiver in the cool, March breeze -
surely, an SOS of a flower in distress,
in dire need, of some TLC, from its own,
 faraway, siren hued sisters. I wonder,
will they heed its weak and woeful
 whisper, before it wilts and shrivels?


 Close by, predatory branches claw their way 
towards an unsuspecting, naive bell. Can't
they tell that this metal's heavily guarded?
Why don't they back away, before it starts
to sway, and alert all those around it?


Echium plantagineum in purple, and more
daisies, this batch in butter and cream, 
spice some life on the bones of a new build,
 and perk up a faded patina in peach.


 Yes, spring has arrived in the
Cretan countryside, bearing gifts
of bucolic grandeur and glory.
I am grateful for Mother Nature's 
generous offerings, and her 
miraculous, annual, dowry. 


 Happy Spring,
my friends!

Hope you'll stop by!
Thanks for 
visiting! 

xo
Poppy 

My Interview at
 Poets United
 MY INTERVIEW AT POETS UNITED, (click on image to read)

Sharing at:

 Home Sweet Home, Feathered Nest Friday,  Simple & Sweet Fridays, 

What's It Wednesday?  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Roses of Inspiration,

Tweak It Tuesday,  Mosaic Monday,  The Art of Homemaking Mondays,

Inspire Me Monday,  Sunlit Sunday, Saturday Sparks Home & Garden Thursday, 

68 comments:

  1. Absolutely beautiful:)

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  2. Very nice Happy Spring with love Janice

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  3. Beautiful! And, inspiring! Spring is here!

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  4. So beautiful and I can't wait to see daisy in my own garden. Spring is definitely all around you... and can't wait it be here! Lovely photos.

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  5. Such lovely photos Poppy. So much beauty all around you. As you can tell from my last post, everything is blooming in my garden since February. Your country side is so stunning with all the lovely flowers popping up all over even between rocks. Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful country side.
    xxoo
    Mary

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  6. You have so much beauty around you...thank you for bringing a big slice of life to this girl in a totally lifeless, flat Illinois! No, it's not that bad...I'll send you some pretty pics in a month or two! :)

    Jane xxxx

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  7. What a lovely place for a walk, Poppy! Glad you met your name-sake in the meadow :-)
    A kiss,
    Amalia

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  8. Happy Spring to you, sweet Poppy! Your photos always make me feel warm with their beautfiul flowers and sunshine.

    You always share the most delightful posts - thank you! Hugs!

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  9. Poppy, My day has been brightened and my spirits have been lifted by your beautiful pictures and your poetic words. Lifted to lofty places where flowers are blooming and the warmth of the sun is gently coaxing the sleeping fields to awaken and to get on to the business of spring. Congratulations on being featured in an article at Poets United, I think that having your work honored by your peers must be a deeply satisfying accomplishment.

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  10. I definitely should visit Crete in spring, the pictures are exceedingly beautiful. But then reading your poetical words, I just loved this. I visited Poet's united already and are looking forward to read the interview. Wish you lots of success!

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  11. This post is a feast for us that love colours and crave for them after a long winter.
    Wonderful hill and mountain views and olive trees... and interesting words.
    Thank you for sharing and have a lovely new week!

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  12. I enjoy reading your thoughts put into poetry. How wonderful to see spring emerging in Crete. I see the red poppy and think of it as a survivor. Perhaps the seeds got transplanted by the wind and this is the first of many to come! Loving the daisies on the old ruins of the old home. You are surrounded with lots of beauty and it's wonderful that you pay attention to the little things that are all part of the grandeur of where you live! Congratulations on being selected for the interview! Hugs, Liz

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  13. How incredibly gorgeous! It's so nice to see these images in one post. It builds the anticipation of what will soon come in our area here in the states. Thank you!

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  14. What a cheerful narration of springs debut...love the line about the Poppy:))
    Can't wait to read the interview.

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  15. Congratulations on the feature, Poppy. I have always loved your writing and I knew that it would be recognized someday. That is just wonderful, I can't wait to read it! Ps---I love your lone poppy. How very poetic itself.

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  16. Oh Poppy your post is a burst of springtime in itself! Congratulations on being recognized and interviewed!!! Your tour today brought a smile to my face~ Hugs, Jackie

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  17. What lovely photos of the countryside!AriadnefromGreece!

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  18. Another feast for the eyes and soul Poppy! You never cease to amaze me at your poetic touch with words and pictures. I am thrilled to hear that you are being interviewed as a blogging poet. I hope you'll share your interview here with us! Your heart is able to see the beauty in simple things, and then write about it with such flair, such talent my friend! Will be looking forward to hearing more about your interview! Blessings and hugs to you today!

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  19. Gorgeous photos and beautiful text, as always. I'm a wee bit envious, Poppy, as we still have quite a bit of snow on the ground. Will Spring ever come?

    xo
    Claudia

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  20. Close by, predatory branches claw their way
    towards an unsuspecting, naive bell. Can't
    they tell that this metal's heavily guarded?
    Why don't they back away, before it starts
    to sway, and alert all those around it?

    Poppy, This is incredibly vivid imagery. I love this. The photographs illustrate your words well, drawing us visually deeper inside this artistic view of landscape. You are a true artist transforming landscape into feeling.

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  21. This was such a beautiful, colorful post. I really enjoyed the way you created imagery with your words. Congratulations on your poetry/blogging feature. I shall look forward to reading it.

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  22. oh my own poppy!
    i will most definitely be reading your interview in poets united! congratulations on that honor my friend.
    this post is simply luscious! like a rich dessert! no! ... more like a cherry plump lady with big bosoms wearing a hat with flowers ... in an open air church! an irreverent reverence to spring itself!
    i loved every minute of it! xoxoxo♥

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  23. Your "winter's malaise", and ours, Poppy, surely fades away viewing these scenes around your home. Your open-concept ruin, with its rooftop daisy landscape, is brave in its sturdy fragility. As is your lone red poppy whispering for help. The bell, surrounded by menacing black branches, stands alone but always capable of pealing forth in a strong voice.

    Once again another magnificent tale of the human spirit and nature, dear Poppy. Well done!

    Dewena

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  24. So so pretty. Have a wonderful first week of Spring!

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  25. I love the way you photograph and write the world.

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  26. Gorgeous sunlight photos.

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  27. Congrats on your interview, Poppy. Your combination of photography and poetry is wonderful. These Spring scenes on Crete are absolutely beautiful. Have a happy Sunday.

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  28. You live in beautiful country! And you write very poetically!
    Brenda

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  29. What gorgeous wild flowers with so many pretty blooms. And I'm happy for your upcoming feature. You are a gifted writer my friend. Happy Spring, Diane

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  30. Such grand vistas of blooms and trees and wonderful light! Gorgeous days in your Cretan countryside, Poppy. Enjoy!

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  31. Poppy you write do well. It made me feel today happy, inspired and serene all at the same time. Glad spring has sprung for you too. Well deserved in being featured today, Monday x

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  32. Poppy piękna wiosna u Ciebie, u nas jeszcze mało kwiatów kwitnie, w ogrodzie jeszcze nie jest tak kolorowo jak u Was, pozdrawiam:)

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  33. I love this post and had to stop by again and visit! I'll have to check out that interview!

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  34. happy spring beautiful gifts indeed! :)

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  35. Spring in Greece is lovely Poppy. You need to find some red poppy seeds and create lots of company for that one lone poppy.
    Thanks for linking to Mosaic Monday.

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  36. I went and read your feature and found it very interesting, especially about your life on Crete, I never realised you had lived there so long, or that you had lived in Heraklion.
    Even though half your heart may be in Toronto, I'm glad that the other half captures and shares the beauty of Greece.

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  37. You are surrounded by incredible beauty and capture it so well with your camera...and then your poetic words make me go back and read them again, more slowly the second time. Letting it all sink in. I'm going over to your interview now...can't wait to read it!

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  38. What a wonderful way to welcome spring! Beautiful, Poppy!! This is such an anticipated season, and to see its arrival in Greece amidst the ancient ruins brings hope. Cheers to a glorious spring. xoxo

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  39. Dearest Poppy,
    I have returned from a very lovely countryside in the Sacramento Valley. However none can compare to the beauty of your world and the warmth, sensitivity, articulate and colorful way you so adeptly describe the moments and details.
    Beautiful written my dear Poppy and my heart sincerely wishes you the most magical moments in each of your days.
    Happy Tuesday Dear Friend!
    xx
    Jemma

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  40. Thank you so much, lovely Poppy, for sharing this beautiful post with Roses of Inspiration. It was a joy to read it again and once again I enjoyed the images. Hugs to you!

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  41. always a joy to visit you Poppy and see your world in both words and pictures so beautifully woven together. It looks like spring has sprung. I can feel the warm happiness of it from here. Congratulations on the interview.
    Have a wonderful week.

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  42. ps - I've just been over at Poets United. I loved reading your interview and hearing your story and about your background and inspiration Poppy. and of course more fabulous images and poetry.

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  43. Warm Greetings of Springtime, Poppy!!! Lovely to have a look at such amazing views in a gorgeous series of images of the Spring... I love the yellow landscape... and I could imagine a short walk through the blooms!!! I'll enter to read the interview; congrats!
    All the best for the new season with lots of joy and good cheer for you and family! Andra Alexa T

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  44. Good morning Poppy! I discovered you on Ivy & Elephants today and so glad I did. You are such an incredible writer and the photography is beautiful. I love the single poppy in the meadow. It reminds me of my wedding bouquet that my hubby gave to me. It was a bouquet of daisies with one perfect red rose in the very center. He told me I was the one perfect rose in a field of daisies. My heart melted and 35 yrs later we are still so in love. Life is poetry isn't it?

    Blessings, Edie Marie

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  45. Do we ever love coming over here to see the striking colors...especially this morning! We have an overcast day with ran....we are thrilled to see the rain so that it can wash away the winter dirt left over from the snow though...don't get us wrong! But seeing your beautiful pictures is a breath of fresh air! Congratulations on your feature coming up ~ that is so exciting ~ best wishes :)
    ~ Karla & Karrie

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  46. Spring is busting out all over, as they say, at least in your adopted homeland. I love springtime, when the green returns and colourful blossoms return. Thank you for the Greek version of this fresh and new time of year. Enjoy the rest of your week, Poppy!

    -Karen

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  47. Nothing more refreshing, soothing, prettier thing than a stroll through the endless mosaic of the Cretan legendary landscape!
    Miss this island...

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  48. Η τελευταία φωτογραφία,αυτή με τα κίτρινα λουλούδια,μου θύμισε τα χρόνια που σπούδαζα στο Ηράκλειο.Από τα παράθυρα της σχολής αντικρίζαμε παρόμοιες εικόνες.
    Σ'ευχαριστώ,Πόπη!
    Χαρούμενη άνοιξη!

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  49. Beautifully written and such gorgeous countryside.... What a joy it was to visit you this morning, Poppy :)

    xo

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  50. Such a lovely post and beautiful photography.

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  51. The only thing I want to do more than tell you what a lovely and colorful post this is would be to hurry up and do so so that I may click on over to that interview. Congratulations on such well deserved recognition Poppy!

    (For some reason, this post wasn't delivered to my inbox. It was only when I saw you had linked up at a link party that I knew you had a new post up, if it happens again I will resubscribe.)

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  52. Grand and glorious and colorful! The words AND the pictures! Beautiful post.

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  53. Such a brave poppy in the midst of all that green. Somehow it inspires me. I read your interview, Poppy, and enjoyed it immensely. I didn't realize you have lived in Greece so many years. Somehow I had thought it was a more recent move. I admire your ability to more than just adapt to a new environment. You have thrived! xxx ~ Nancy

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  54. Beautiful! Only one poppy, what a sight.
    Thanks so much for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
    Blessings,
    Cindy

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  55. A beautifully crafted post dearest Poppy - you transported me to Crete and the beauty that surrounds you.
    The charming rooftop ruins which I imagine in a previous time was a much loved and treasured family home - sadly now deserted for reasons unknown... who lived here and why was it abandoned?
    I feel it deserves a story of it's own.. it takes just one moving image such as this to stir my creative juices!!!
    Oh I wish you had picked that brave little poppy and taken it home... then it would know it was admired and loved - can you tell I'm a rescuer by nature?!

    Inspiring writing again dear Poppy - I've been missing after Blogger not letting me open other blogs photos or leave a comment...... I hope I'm OK now, fingers crossed.

    Hugs
    Shane

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  56. Oh how I loved your blog, I don't usually look at link parties but I'm so glad I did. I will be back to look through lots of your previous posts and look forward to the 'Interview' and following you.

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  57. What a beautiful introduction to spring! Thank you for sharing on the Art of Home-Making Mondays :) And how neat to capture the lone red poppy, Poppy!

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  58. Hello Poppy, gorgeous images. Looks like spring has sprung there. The flowers and blossoms are beautiful. I would love to see the ruins.. Have a happy day and weekend!

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  59. What a beautiful introduction to the dawn of the Cretan spring! Images and words, as always, are lovely. It's a treat to visit your posts Poppy!

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  60. Just beautiful Poppy! Thanks for joining HSH!
    Sherry

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  61. I am extremely impressed along with your writing abilities, Thanks for this great share.

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  62. Amazing blog and very interesting stuff you got here! I definitely learned a lot from reading through some of your earlier posts as well and decided to drop a comment on this one!

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  63. Very interesting blog. A lot of blogs I see these days don't really provide anything that attract others, but I'm most definitely interested in this one. Just thought that I would post and let you know.

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Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. I really appreciate hearing from all of you! Have a great day!