February is a funny old month. In the northern hemisphere, you so often hear people say, “ugh, February’s awful”. Often our coldest month and meteorologically the third and final of winter, I suppose people have had enough by then and just want spring to jolly well hurry up.

I can’t quite decide if the distinct turning point I sense on the first of January each year is actually a real thing or all in my head. It’s as if there is a 180 degree shift in nature: before the new year everything is in decline, but from the first of January, those very same plants are suddenly on the ascent.

Well, after almost two years away from Australia, I managed to time my very first trip back, in early December, to exactly coincide with the heaviest snowfall our village had seen in a decade. I was sad to miss the snow, but very much cheered up when photos of our very white garden kept popping up on my phone. Our lovely cleaner, next door neighbour and neighbouring farmer all kindly thought of me missing this moment and without being asked, popped over to capture our snowy garden for us. How grateful it made me feel to have such a thoughtful community around us in our new home. Continue reading →