Oh my darling columbine

These flowers greeted a grieving child, the spring after she lost her Daddy, her home, most of her Mummy: the year she turned eight, the year life turned upside down. They have a special place in my heart

Petersfield was a long way away and in Hastings, in Ganna's house, life was utterly changed. Mummy was out at work all the time, but behind Ganna’s house, in the garden, that secret, quiet space, there were columbine and grape hyacinths, and space to heal.We have a new variety, self seeded, in our front garden. Such delicate tones

They give me great joy