Spring on the Move.

We feel very priviledged to have suddenly seen today wave after wave of what we take for storks flying North. Sue was still working out in the garden at about 5.30pm when she suddenly was shouting for me to go back outside. And there was a glorious sight of storks who had decided that the time was right for heading back to their breeding sites. Sue says that they nest in Holland.(?) Funnily enough we had heard geese-like calls last night as we were lying in bed. It's difficult to describe the awe we felt seeing these birds on their annual migration, over which they have no control. We are humbled by Nature's complexity.

On a more prosaic level, the 'common english gardener' was to be seen again, despite intermittent rain. This was all prompted by the arrival of a parcel of plants ordered on the internet. A slight problem as we have nowhere to put the plants and we don't have enough pots! Yesterday we toured round all of the shops we could think of trying to buy some ordinary black, plastic pots, all to no avail. No-one seems to sell them here in France, perhaps because no sensible Frenchman (or woman) gardens like English people do. Our final stop was at a grower who had greenhouses full of lovely looking geraniums. Sue asked him where she could get pots and, as it happened there were some just inside the door of his greenhouse. He told us that the only way is to buy in very large quantities, and then he gave Sue the 6 pots she needed. He wouldn't take any money, and, for us, this exemplifies the reception and the attitude of the French people we have met here.

Before the amazing appearance of the migrating Storks, we were working outside in the garden. This morning was dry but cloudy, but this afternoon, it gradually became heavier rain. Not that it stopped us, as it wasn't cold. Having potted up all of her new purchases, Sue started clearing out the small bed infront of the house, so she could tidy up the roses and get them onto training wires. Needless to say, she was as happy as a lark, to be topped only by the unexpected arrival of the Storks. A day to remember!