Waiting for Blossoms

When we first moved to DC, I was grumpy for a good 10 months. I didn't like it here and wanted to move back to LA. Then the cherry blossoms burst open and softened me up (I wrote a radio piece about the festival called Signs of Spring). Today I still miss California. But every season I try to catch the cherry blossoms.

That first time I saw them, I rushed my parents out to the city so they could enjoy them too. It rained from the moment their plane arrived until the moment it took off. We tried a covered boat cruise, but it was no good. The following year I convinced my parents to trek here once again – it rained harder. We didn’t even bother driving by the Tidal Basin, let alone walking around it. There’s nothing as depressing as seeing cherry blossoms on a wet cloudy day. It’s not just the flowers that make the experience magical – you need a mix of bloom and sun and blue blue sky.

Now I know the secret. I can’t force cherry blossoms to fit my schedule. This year, I’d have to wait until they were ready to sparkle. So I stayed inside as the rain pelted the ground. Monday morning, out walking the dog, I shivered in the damp breeze and looked up where the sun was barely visible through heavy clouds. Back in my office I hunkered down for another dreary day. Yet by noon, the clouds blew away.

“Can you leave work right this minute?” I asked Ron over Yahoo! IM.
A couple trades on the stock market, and he was out the door.
“Let’s walk to the festival,” I suggested.
“It’s 8 miles,” Ron said.
Bummer.
“You could rollerblade and I could ride your Townie,” he offered.
“That might work – if you don’t mind being seen on a girl’s bike the color of red raspberries and with a white basket on the front,” I said.
He shrugged. “I don’t mind.”
We ended up driving to a park near Reagan Airport and walked from there (about 3 miles).

The picture above was taken when I looked back over my shoulder -- thanks to the suggestion of a man we met (most people only look forward on the path or out across the water).

Girls who dressed the part.

Next year my family will have to come for more than two days so they can wait out the rain. It's so worth it. Pretty, pretty, pretty.