I love Queen Anne's Lace and at this time of year it grows so abundantly in the fields and along the roadsides. It nudges sweet memories...more "feelings" really, than actual memories...from the far recesses of my childhood. As a young girl I was allowed to roam and wander freely and spent many a happy hour hidden in the grasses and Queen Anne's Lace of the nearby fields, gazing up at the sky. I felt safe in these small secret "nests" and spent a large part of my childhood finding places like this to retreat to...places where I could daydream and wonder...oh, I "wondered" a lot! (I don't think I've changed much either!)
I also had a favourite tree to dream in. And piles of books...there were always a least three books in progress. I lived more in my dreams and my imaginings than I did in the "real world". I didn't have the words to express it at that time but as an adult looking back, I think I found the world a bit too loud, a bit too abrasive and a just a little bit frightening...I was a crab without a shell. Not too surprising for a Cancer girl! It's been a long journey over the years to feel at home in my own skin but I still like to retreat from the world now and then. It's how I regroup and recharge.
Interesting what feelings and memories a wildflower can stir!
As a child, I was told that this plant was called Queen Anne's Lace because Queen Anne's Ladies-in-Waiting washed her lace for her and then laid it out to dry over the tall weeds. There are many theory's about this but it's my childhood and I'm sticking to it (and this poem supports it...sort of!)
Queen Anne's Lace
Queen Anne, Queen Anne, has washed her lace
(She chose a summer's day)
And hung it in a grassy place
To whiten, if it may.Queen Anne, Queen Anne, has left it there,
And slept the dewy night;
Then waked, to find the sunshine fair,
And all the meadows white.Queen Anne, Queen Anne, is dead and gone
(She died a summer's day),
But left her lace to whiten in
Each weed-entangled way!Mary Leslie Newton
I'm off to play this weekend...We're doing some boating, inter-island hopping, winery visiting, and connecting with old friends. Sounds absolutely perfect!
Play well and be kind to one another,
