Trilliums... Trout Flowers... Transience and Transcendence

On Saturday morning I awoke at 5:50 am to discover a blinding.. whiteout... winter... wind-driven rage outside. Within the space of an hour that sight was replaced by sunny, blue skies... but the cold temperature remained for the rest of the day.

On Monday afternoon... I decided to go out to paint and dressed warmly to prepare for the chilly weather. As I drove down Mt St Louis Road to my painting destination, I was stopped dead in my tracks by another incredulous discovery. The woodlands on either side of the road were blanketed in white! No... not snow... but rather waves of white trilliums! This is a very early date of occurrence for this annual stage of Spring's arrival.

I have include some jpegs to demonstrate this purely Ontario happening. The trillium is the official Provincial Wildflower for Ontario because of its wide range within the woodland areas across the entire province. It is always a "Transcendental Moment" for "Me" personally. It guarantees an end to winter's long reign... and signifies Spring's triumph!How these delicate flowers could prevail in such harsh cold conditions is a deep mystery to "Me"!

Fully enthused and encouraged... I proceeded down to Ingram Road... a favourite haunt of mine that has provided many successful sketches in the past. I call it affectionately.... "The Honey Hole"! I set up quickly on the brink of the hill where the 6th Line and Ingram Road converge and set to work on a 10x12 inch toned panel. In less than two hours... I was packing my gear and headed back towards home.

What a wonderful and uplifting afternoon... "out there"! Life doesn't get any better! "I" feel deeply blessed to be able to experience the true joy of "being fully alive"!

Good Painting to All! ... Get "out there"!