Thursday 5 July 2018

Reprieve

As so often happens after a severe cold front, Cape Town basks again in balmy sunshine for a while, enabling us to dry out a little and clean up after the storm. The garden loved the rain and branches are shooting out as if it's Spring, pale green leaves providing joyous contrast to darker vegetation showing signs of drought desperation. The birds are shouting from the shrubbery - bokmakieries not seen here before, my favourite Southern boubou, irrepressible sunbirds in iridescent finery, a lone butcher bird feasting on unwary worms. The suet ball always brings the robin hopping hopefully below to peck up the fallen scraps - you won't find him hanging by a claw from the feeder! An olive thrush has started to visit - another exciting event on the deck.
All this beneath a vast blue canopy of sky, edged by snow-capped mountains on one horizon and heaving swells of the endless Atlantic Ocean on the other. It seems hard to believe that a mere month ago we were on the brink of drought disaster and now it is hard to remember the dust as we struggle to cope with the mud. But then again, o ye of little faith, did we really think Day Zero would come?







No comments:

Post a Comment