perfection

Our midwestern weather this time of year can rarely match the quality found in the mid-Atlantic, where in a very good year, the mixture of chilled and cool air is moderated enough to allow rollout over a sustained period of blooming bulbs, shrubs, and trees.

But occasionally, we get patches of weather where the sustained temps are neither too cold or too hot, and the storms die down enough to allow one or two sets of blooming plants to truly shine.

And in the past week, we've had that perfect weather, with temps leaning on the cool side, with blue skies that aren't too hot, and with gentle rain, all appropriate for the colors that do well in this season.

The redbuds and the dogwoods and the lilacs have been exceptional this year. Each day a drive across town or a walk in the neighborhood is a dangerous experience for someone like me, distracted by a world that is outlined by white and pink trees and shrubs. These sustained days of color are lulling me into thinking that this is normal. And it is not.