When I look across the mountains,
Ere I view the river’s banks,
Gazing o’er the endless prairies,
With heaven’s help I render thanks.
When I see the marks of freedom,
Spelling out the rights of men,
For these liberties ne’er ending,
My thanks I render yet again.
When I think of war and sorrow,
Bombs, grenades, and armored tanks,
Suffering and desolation,
For times of peace I render thanks.
For love’s triumph over hatred,
For true joy, found deep within,
For the music of the cosmos,
I render thanksgiving again.
I’ve been enjoying your photos, old and new, very much. The one of your late grandmother in the garden was lovely. My garden is abloom right now, with jacaranda, bougainvillia and several roses amongst many other kinds of flower all ablaze.
I had been wondering when the growing season hit, below the equator. When I was a teenager I lived near the equator, but never have been south of it. I have winter pansies in bloom, at present.
It really depends on where you are i think. In southern Australia, up in the mountains, you have seasons not unlike England and in New Zealand it is even closer. Melbourne has four clear seasons. So does the countryside on top of the esacarpment near here.
Wollongong has a microclimate that makes it subtropical even though it is, in theory, too far south for that. It really doesn’t have a full winter or autumn as I understand those seasons from living elsewhere. There is no period in which leaves get colourful and fall; most of the trees around here are evergreen. To get a colourful scene though, just drive up the escarpment and enjoy the exotics up there.
My lawn doesn’t grow much in winter but my flowering plants keep flowering: bougainvillia, roses, and a wide variety of bulb plants. They seem to flower at least four times each year and there is no time in which about half the garden doesn’t seem to be in flower. I also have palm trees and banana plants, flowering gum and jacaranda which do flower less often. I live about halfway up the escarpment, about as far as it is permitted to build until you reach the top. Outside the house, it looks as though the mountain just towers above you but driving up from the coastal plain you can see from the lights how far up we really are.