春山淡治而如笑
夏山蒼翠而如滴
秋山明浄而如粧
冬山惨淡而如眠
Mountains in spring
--calm and smiling
Mountains in summer
-- luxurious and dripping blue green blue
Mountains in autumn
--bright and clean, adorned in color
Mountains in winter
--somber, as if asleep
Mountains smiling in early spring--Borrowed like so many things from China, it was made famous by the Northern Song painter Guo Xi, whose poem about mountains smiling and laughing appeared in an poetry anthology in Japanese known as 漢詩集 「臥遊録」 Chinese Poetry Anthology Dream Journey Jottings: 春山淡治而如笑 夏山蒼翠而如滴 秋山明浄而如粧 冬山惨淡而如眠 “Mountains smiling in early spring” was an image much appreciated in Japan. Imagine after what must have felt like an almost unendingly long period of cold and depressing "mountains sleeping," the mountains in March would seem to almost "spring" to life again.
Mountains laughing and songbirds singing sweetly out my window in the mornings. Spring also bring the parrots, squawking maniacally in the trees or as they move across the sky in gigantic flocks. At night, peacocks shrieking in the palm trees can be heard for miles:
"Spring is here, Spring is here!"
And, “Oh how charming it is when the dandelions appear in the second month,” Lady Sei Shonagon might say. Dandelions blanketing my neighbor's lawn, I think, "Isn't it charming?" Then with the third, fourth, fifth flush of oranges, comes the goldfinches. Like fluttering golden chunks of sunshine, little piggies flying, I watch them feasting at the bird-feeder out my kitchen window.
Oranges, lemons, grapefruits, roses and dandelions...time to take to the hills!
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