3/6/2012
I am teased with expectation.
There is warmth in the days and the light is changing and the dark comes later by minute later.
Spring hints of its intention with birdsong and an embryonic crocus in the garden and the measured swell of creeks in the foothills.
And wind.
I am not fond of wind and think of it as an annoyance or a risk. Hell hath no fury like Mother Nature’s wrath in spring. She sends wind to urge winter away but the cold rarely goes its way quietly or without unsettled resistance.
No, I am not fond of wind.
Except when kites are involved.
If I were a kite I would like the wind.
I would pull hard on the string and soar far above where birds fly.
I would twist and turn and circle and plunge simply because I could.
I would brace for gusts in my path, lean in, pick up speed and cruise.
I would be a peacock of a kite, bold and bright, a star among all other kites.
And when it came time to return to earth I would do so gently, gracefully and without getting tied up in knots.
And I would not tire of the wind or wish it gone or begrudge its pass-through.
I would happily expect the wind to suggest the pending homecoming of spring. I would not allow it to tease me.
If, that is, I were a kite.
“Kites rise highest against the wind, not with it.”
Winston Churchill
I took these pictures on a windy day last spring
at the Kite Festival in Arvada, Colorado. The photo of windswept me was
taken by John Baumchen.
What a good lesson in enjoying what is in front of us and soaring with it instead of wishing it warmer or calmer or anything besides what it is. Happy March Bella!
And a good one to you as well writingfeemail
There’s something not so fun about buffetted around. Love the images of the kites.
I agree. Buffetting stinks.
Now I have to fly a kite…,looks like fun!!! Love the Churchill quote fantastic!
I like that quote a lot, too. Thank you Terri.
Kites fly highest, against the wind, not with it! That’s a good one. It is not all the time that following the tide gets us to our destination, we have to go against it sometimes!
Sometimes that is hard, but it is usually worth it. Thanks for stopping in and for your comment
Fabulous!
I am glad you liked that!
Beautiful photos, exceptional writing!
Thanks, Dianna
another gorgeous post, Winsomebella. I hope some day you’ll collect your posts and publish them in a more lasting form. You are a poet of words and images.
I really appreciate that comment Christina–coming from a writer like you, it really means a lot.
I absolutely loved that. The words and the kites. Even the windswept winsomebella.
O. Leonard you are very kind :–)
Very nice kites, and beautiful quote from Churchill, whom I admire. Thank you for a beautiful post.
I think there are a lot of us Churchill “followers”
Now I am dying to go kite flying. I haven’t done that in ages. Lovely post mixed with the perfect visuals.
I hope you get the chance to kite fly soon, Kourtney. Thank you for visiting today.
Just wanted to let you know that I’ve tagged you in a game but it’s no big deal if you don’t want to take part – if you do – follow the link here http://hurdlestohappiness.wordpress.com/2012/03/07/time-for-some-fun-tag-youre-it/ and have fun with it. Enjoy your day!
Thank you for thinking of me and I will check it out. Glad you stopped in and have a great day yourself!
Beautiful thoughts. Lovely pictures. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Barb. Happy to see you, as always.
We are experiencing some really high winds here right now. Thanks for adding the kites to it and making it special.
I am glad you like the kites, Bongo.
free, beautiful, continue…
Thank you. Will do
Great photos and I loved the Churchill quote. I hadn’t read that one before.
He was one of the masters of quotes and I particularly like this one. Thank you.
Oh, I absolutely love the spectacular colors! We take our kite along whenever we go to Lake Michigan. There’s lots of great wind that picks it up and makes it gooooooooooooo
A kite and Lake Michigan sounds like a perfect combination, Laurie.
How timely this post is! I, too, do not like wind. And this is the windy month here in Idaho. I walk to work and back in wind and it drives me nuts. But I make an exception – wind on a warm summer day is delightful!
I am with you on that Snoring Dog—a breeze on a hot summer’s day can’t be beat. Glad to see you–!
I’m living in Costa Rica, near the Panama border. All the Ticos say there are two weeks of wind a year. I’m sure we had them all back in December, but the wind seems to dismiss what the weather forecasters say is the norm. The effect of this wind is suffered by the 100+ crimson-fronted parakeets who nest in our palm tree; it is breeding season right now, and the wind is tossing the fronds on which they perch like a violent storm at sea. Usually they’re quiet at night, but they screech, scream, and chatter all night long, voicing their annoyance at the disturbance and adding to the noise and ruckus. And the bananas are not able to withstand the force, and a huge number of banana trees have been pushed over with only half-developed bananas. The dust roils up off the dirt roads which are all the roads of the area but the one to Ciudad Neily. But I agree, if I had a kite, the beauty of it flying high above the palms and tropical jungle would be a beautiful sight and a pleasant diversion from what otherwise is an annoyance.
All those parakeets would be something to see–and hear! Thank you for stopping in and your nice comment!
Beautiful images and metaphors. Interestingly, early in the post of I was thinking about how a kite wasn’t enjoying flying .. and then I transitioned.
I am glad you liked it. Thanks!
Another beautiful post. I was a kite once. The time I went up in a hot air balloon. It’s the only time I have actually been a part of the wind and not fighting against it.
I’ve been in a hot air balloon too and you are exactly right……you become part of the wind way up there. Thanks Al.
my oldest is now at the age where he thinks kites are amazing. I’m looking forward to doingi some of that this spring with him!
It was lots of fun to watch the parents and young children at this festival. I hope you have the chance to try it with your son
I don’t like wind all that much either, but it is nice to watch the hawks ride it – and the kites, of course.
I love watching hawks too Margie. They just float it seems. They make flying look effortless.
I enjoyed this post very much. I have a fondness for kites. Lincoln City, Oregon has a good Kite Festival in June every year.
Glad you liked this, Max!
Our nearby park is popular with kite enthusiasts. You’ve got me thinking my husband and I should join them.
Beautiful photos and wise words!
Thanks JM…….happy kite flying to you!
The Kite Runner – a novel by Khaled Hosseini, 2003
Yep…..loved it!
Seriously impressed. A photo of a “windswept” me looks more like I got mauled, slapped, kicked, and electricuted. Not my finest look, I tell you!
Thanks Tori. I was a bit disheveled but it seemed like it belonged in the post
I want kites too
These are so beautiful photographs… And how nice to watch them… Thank you dear Bella, and I loved your photograph too. With my love, nia
Thanks, Nia. I always love your photographs
I like the butterfly one. I have one of a squid in silk. It has hung on my wall for 30 years and never been flown.
I think you are wise, Carl. I can’t imagine a flying squid. On the wall sounds perfect.
Loved the dragonfly …. what a great way to spend an afternoon!
It was very unusual and in this picture it almost looks surreal. Thank you MJ.
When are the governments of the world going to get together and finally do something about that pesky wind? My acupuncturist keeps telling me wind is the enemy so I’m on your side.
There should be some way to lasso that wind into one giant wind farm so the rest of us don’t have to suffer it. Thanks for stopping in
Bella, your writing is a such a delight. I really enjoyed this post. The monarch butterfly kite was my favorite one pictured. I understand the fear that comes with the wind. Mother Nature certainly has a powerful weapon – that wind.
I spent my childhood in tornado alley and one hit my neighborhood and leveled twenty houses, starting with the one next door. Very scary. And yes, very powerful. Thanks Lenore Diane.
Now that is the best tease ever!
Certainly better than some, eh Chris?
Beautiful post. My sister Mary loves flying kites, and I always think of her spirit when I see them. -kate
Thank you Kate—Mary and I must be similar spirits
Such unique kites! Lovely.
There were some real doozies there that day, Patti. Thank you.
I love the photo of “windswept you” and all the other windy soaring kites accompanied by uplifting words too. As always, your blog posts are amazing.
Thank you Dor. I was pretty much overly windswept at day’s end.
Love all of the kites! Glad to be able to visit!
Bella – I love this post. Your writing says what I would like to say about the wind and kites. Thank you
Bella, your photos and stories never fail to amaze and inspire. Thanks.
Your thoughts on wind married so beautifully with the kites. You would not be happy living in Virginia Beach. We wind seems ever with us, living right on the ocean. I don’t mind wind in the summer because it doesn’t feel so hot. But when it’s early spring, like now, it makes the day feel so much colder. Love this post. I would love to own a book, a big book, of your pictures and words. It would sit on my coffe table so I could pick it up during a quiet moment and savor each lovely morsel.
I love the image of the butterfly kite. How pretty! A Frank Angle recommended your blog.
How marvelous that you found the message of good and soaring things in the usually-unwelcome wind. And how sweet that your post was a perfect reminder for me of one of my late great-uncles, a true kite aficionado (he was one of the founders of the Washington Kitefliers Association). A gentle and kind man, and one who tamed the fierce winds with his kite-flying rather artfully, I think. Thanks for the lovely post!
Kathryn
I’ve had those same feelings about the wind, usually when I need stillness and the stubborn air insists on rushing past. I love the way you turned it around with this post. What would a kite be without the wind? Beautifully expressed, Bella, as always.
A really beautiful post.
I like the dragonfly. I never heard of the Arvada Kite Festival, but I only got over there about once a year anyway.
Now I have to buy a kite and feel ten again – great post.
One of my dreams until now is to fly kites…love to feel the wind on my face….
nice. March is a lively month, full of anticipation and remembrances.
It’s blowing hard here, but I shall try to enjoy the wind like a kite.
Sometimes kites struggle with the wind too…..hope it doesn’t last too long for you.