A windy Spring has burst forth with howling winds which has whipped blossom from the trees and created havoc not only in our own garden but in the surrounding suburbs of Berwick as well as Melbourne as a whole.

We woke yesterday to find our garden setting sitting in the bottom of the pool! We'll no doubt have to hire a wet suit to retrieve it as the water is freezing this time of year unless someone who reads this blog has another idea - any suggestions would be appreciated!

The wind during the evening was so forceful that it has blown the top off one of our gum trees which is now sitting in our neighbours garden draped partially over the fence. Luckily it missed their pool and tennis court! My husband will tackle it with the chainsaw over the weekend. More wood for the fire next year!

Our free standing basket ball hoop (the base is filled with sand) was blown directly over and fell in the middle of four cars without damaging any!

We feel fairly lucky as we have escaped so easily whereas others have had quite substantial damage to their homes. During our drive into work yesterday, we saw many trees blown over by the forceful winds.

We've not had many visitors to our feeding trays due to the strong winds. Most of our parrot friends are no doubt sheltering in the nearby bush.

But baring the high winds, Spring has finally begun to wake from its brooding sleep as Winter coldness edges slowly from the land. The architrave of the sky creeps towards light which clarifies and brightens daily as the sun rises higher to cover the shivering earth with fingers of warmth, unlocking some private incommunicable note of triumph to march forward with a burst of colour into another cycle of life. The tangled bare branches of sleeping trees and bushes are now rendered into bead strings of buds, some of which are beginning to burst forth in a blaze of colour. Working in the garden is a joy, surrounded by nodding daffodils and blossom, digging in the damp earth, watching the dormant plants come to life and to see those we've planted and cut back spring forth with new growth - there is something very special about this time of the year.