Wednesday 25 March 2015

Spring greens


Joe's nursery session last Thursday happened to be on a gloriously sunny morning. Which meant he got to play outside with a tub of water and I got to take a walk, lonely as a cloud, for a couple of hours.

My route was one which is very familiar to me, a walk I've done hundreds of times over the years. And part of it involves a section of rather muddy woodland. On one side: the River Irwell. On the other, steep banks of rock. It's soggy and richly green, a tapestry of mosses and ivy and ferns. I took all these photographs within a stretch of maybe ten yards.


One of my most prized possessions is an old, dog-eared copy of Roget's Thesaurus. I look words up just for fun. Yes I do. I love words, especially rather antiquated ones. And with this particular post in mind I decided to see what it had on 'green'. Not in the 'new', 'young', 'sour', 'ignorant', 'immature', 'pleasure-ground' or 'innocent' sense. In a green, the colour, sense.


Here's what I found:
432. Greenness - N. greenness, green, verdancy, greenery, greenwood; verdure, viridescensce; jade, emerald, malachite, beryl.


green colour, jungle green, Lincoln g., sea-g., Nile g.; bottle green, pea-g., sage g., jade g., celadon, reseda.


green pigment, terre verte, celadonite, viridian, verditer, bice, Paris green; chlorophyl, etiolin.


Adj. green, viridescent, verdant, emerald; verdurous, grassy, leafy; grass-green, porraceous; greenish, bilious; lime, chartreuse.


See? 


So much more interesting and descriptive than plain old 'green'. You see, I toyed with the notion of naming this post 'Fifty Shades of Green'. But then I changed my mind. Because despite all the purples and yellows and pinks suddenly appearing, to me spring is green. Shoots appearing. Buds bursting. Leaves unfurling. So 'Spring Greens' it is.


And when I got up close to all this life and growth I was amazed at the sheer, well, greenness of it. The layers, the variety, the depth. I wondered whether I should write this post at all. Would people find it too monochromatic? A bit of a 'nothing' post (not newsy or informative, no real story to tell)? But I was inspired. Both when taking the photographs and looking at them once I was home. 

Walking alone can be such a luxury, an opportunity to stop and explore and examine. To discover tiny details. And to wonder. 





14 comments:

  1. What a beautiful post. I think green is the most subtle, many hued colour and your photos show that perfectly.

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  2. Breathtaking greens, beautifully photographed. It is indeed a luxury to walk on your own isn't it. I'm always rushing to catch up if I stop to snap a photo. I love all the words as well. And I LOVE a nice thesaurus. And dictionaries. The dictionary often finds its way onto the dinner table. We're word nerds! CJ xx

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  3. Hey Sarah,
    I enjoy a solitary walk too. A chance to stop and feel the breath as it were. I have been struck by the acidic yellow of the gorse bushes. The colour is an almost day glo hue. It contrasts beautifully with all the green.
    Leanne xx

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  4. oh those greens are divine.

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  5. So many shades of the one colour - beautiful. And so many different words to describe them. Love it!

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  6. lovely lovely green. i never get tired of it.

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  7. I really enjoy looking at color words. I looked at yellow words on my blog recently, it was an interesting exercise. I love dictionaries and thesauruses too. My husband and I each brought our own copy of the same exact dictionary into the marriage and they are consulted frequently.

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  8. green is such a great colour. At one point in my wardrobe I had about 15 tops of various shades of green! lovely words too. X

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  9. There can never be enough green in our lives. It is a colour that makes me profoundly happy, particularly at this time of year. x

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  10. What a wonderful world of green! It is what shows off and brings together all of the other colours in the natural world isn't it! xx

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  11. Another of the ways in which you and I seem to be alike ... I have an old copy of Roget's Thesaurus given to me when I was seven because my Mum got fed up with me always having hers in my room. I still dip into it regularly ... words are probably my favourite things.

    And wild, green, growing things, those are important to me too, so I have really enjoyed your images and this post.

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  12. Well I'm hooked... just found your blog through Bunny Mummy.
    I love your style of photos, and your knowledge of your subject. I am into nature in a big way but been able to combine my enthusiasm for photography as well makes me very happy. Just lately I have got a new camera and I am amazed what a difference it has made to how I see things.
    Will be following you from now on...
    Amanda xx

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    1. Hello! Nice to meet you. You can get addicted to getting out and taking photos (I love it, and my camera is probably the best investment I ever made!)
      I'm glad you like the blog :)
      Sarah

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  13. I love that no matter the weather it is always so lovely and green 'lush' around here and you've captured it beautifully. x

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