Rose Pilgrimage

Something I look forward to each year is my pilgrimage to Elizabeth Park in Hartford, Connecticut to see The Roses. Some years I get there. Some years I don’t. Roses wait for no one and if you don’t time it just right you miss them. Rain can wreck havoc on them. One year I drove all the way there, only to find I was a bit too late. The petals were curling and brown. Not exactly a delight to the camera lens.

When I go, I pack the car with lawn chairs, a cooler full of ice blocks, lunch and plenty to drink. It can be hot in this season and, more often than not, it’s muggy. Sometimes I throw in the parasol, straw hats and sketch books.

Sitting on a bench under a tree just outside the rose rings, I sit in the shade sipping water and feeling the breeze on my face. The breeze is heavenly and scented heavily with the perfume of fragrant roses. I close my eyes a breathe deep.

Treasured Teen and I wander with cameras at the ready, finding the best blossoms to curate. TT poses among the flowers looking fabulous and fierce and feminine. Such lovely photos we have over the years.

I could spend hours there and usually I do.