Thaumatophyllum

A suitably abstract name for today's natural abstract. It is what we call an elephant ear philodendron, and I love the drape and shape of its leaves. It is growing happily outside the living window, threatening to take over, and resisting all attempts to tame it. But it is its exuberant abundance that I like.

The trees are starting to show their new leaves, the tulip greens are pushing their way out of the pot they are in, and John planted the tulip bulbs that bloomed on the bookcase a couple of weeks ago. They were putting out roots, so it will be interesting to see if they do anything. There is no sign of any of the daffodils John has planted over the years, but the Dutch iris are blooming and should be followed in another month by the bearded ones. The weather has been appropriately springlike, warm in the sun but chilly in the shade, but this is going to change tomorrow as we move into another rainy spell. Just as I was gearing up to go to the farmers' market.

I don't know what made the difference, but I slept much better last night for which I'm very grateful. I'm not willing to say yet whether this is a trend, but I hope so. I suffered (and I don't use that term lightly) through Julia's ministrations in physical therapy and reached full extension. Painful as it is, I still am a firm believer in it. I recall a friend who had a TKR at the beginning of the total Covid lockdown period when he was unable to follow up with therapy. Because of that he hasn't had a very good result and still has a hard time getting around, althoughhe does have a lot of other health issues, so who knows? 

While I was being tortured, John and Spike were enjoying a walk in the park. Having driven the car today, my next goal is to start going for walks again, something I really miss. Until I can get out for a walk, it's feeling a little like a Covid lockdown again. Perhaps when it's self imposed it's even more difficult to accept. While I'm still mulling the Covid repercussions, one thing I know. Things have changed. Thinking back to the beginning when people were trapped on cruise ships and we were washing our supermarket purchases and leaving them outside the door, it is possible to realize how far we have come, but the uncertainty, fear and isolation all conspired to leave their mark. What makes me truly grateful is the speed with which a vaccine was developed. The rollout was messy and frustrating, but the end result was a lessening of the severity of the virus and an end to isolation.