The Annual Tulip Walk – for Beth

This one’s for Beth. She often challenged her friends and readers to get out to enjoy life. Since so many of us live all over the place, we are not able to be there for her memorial. Someone had the idea that on a particular day, we should all get out and do something in her name. Linda suggested we do it on May 19, which would have been Beth’s 43rd birthday. I don’t have a corset or anything with skulls(the suggested attire), but I do have a camera and flowers in my neighbourhood.

Every year, the gardeners who take care of the 18th-century garden in St. James Park plant a sea of tulips and every year, they’re a different color. Part of the excitement of spring is waiting to see what colour they’ll be this year. Some years are better than others and that certainly includes 2013. I mean, will you look at this!

They look like small globes of captured sunlight.

Just on the other side of the bed, I found this blazing away

At the front of the church, they’ve chosen a different color. I’m not thrilled to bits with this one — it’s like it can’t quite decide which colour it wants to be — but I love seeing it up against the old wall of the cathedral

Had to go see the beautiful white and purple tulips once more before I moved on. I wasn’t the only one

A bit further east, there’s an area by a beautiful fountain where someone else has been quite unrestrained in decorating with tulip bulbs. I had shots of these last year, too — they look like faerie ballerinas. I wanted to see what my new camera could do with them

It certainly captures red well, something my previous camera had some trouble with

Found this heavy triple-layered bloom resting its head, no doubt tired of all the dancing going on around it

am I the only one hearing Tchaikovsky?

There was another row of dancers, dressed like creamsicles to stand out a bit

At the very end, I found this beauty.

Thank you, Beth.