Meandering thoughts - Sita Sreeraman

 After many years, Zurich saw about a feet or two of heavy snowfall in day. In a few hours, Zurich and around were transformed from a desolate gray in to a luminous winter wonderland. Some makeover! The beauty both breathless and serene, the air so fresh.. the trees bending under the weight of snowfall like a heavy fruit laden branch.. the white of the snow so bright, so luminous.. what magic! Such a pristine, pure sight to behold! Just seeing the snow, feeling it in the hands and just being with it.. a silent communion with Nature and God! The stillness so poignant! There are times when I think God or the higher intellect shows his/her hand in overt ways (usually this is subtle like a bud blooming) and snow is always one such experience! I feel God is playing with his sieve, dusting icing sugar on planet earth, one of his play times.. We humans can at best capture these moments and bow in humility to the creator above, the artist who with a few strokes can create such magic! For t...

Ah Spring! Nothing like the fresh greens and explosion of flowers in spring! Mother Earth's bounty, after a few months of winter, the change in landscape is special! Every year, I wait with bated breath as first the snow-drops make their appearance, followed by daffodils, primulas, magnolias, hyacinths and cherry blossoms and then the magic happens - the leaves appear, the green so fresh, so heart-touchingly green, I pause, I keep taking pictures but then they never ever match what the human eye and heart can see and feel! There is something so special about this green against the backdrop of the blue blue skies, probably after months of gray scapes, it fills me with such optimism and joy!

I volunteer at the American Wome's Club, Zurich library once a month. It is interesting, as I run into some many different genres of books as I put them back into the shelves, or check out the books for the library members. And sometimes, I get to chat with the patrons, and they share some lovely tibit of info or other, about a book, event, hobby, class. Whenever we move houses or towns, my husband usually tells me about the local library, it is like a good sales pitch, USP, the library is within walking distance etc.  Some recent books I have read with great joy are: The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, The Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier, How to be good - Nick Hornby among others, books I don't know if I would have picked up myself. These were returns and as I shelve the books, I inevitably read the synopsis at the end and they end up coming home with me. Oh, the Joys Of Reading a good book!

My local neighbourhood is full of snails and slugs. I love the snails for the colour of their shells, often pausing to take pictures of these lovely creatures. Slugs are snails without the shell. The yellow and the gray ones are the ones I see quite commonly around. But the other day, I was so thrilled as I watched this snail - it's shell colour matching the fallen leaves around it! Such lovely camouflage, indeed! What a beauty! It did make my day!

It is Novemeber 2017, this year winter has come late to Zurich. The trees still have the last of the coloured leaves and my local farmer's market filled with Chrysanthemums and Christmas berries, Christmas trees, all jostling for space, for this has been an unsually long Autumn and a balmy winter! As I look at the Chrysanthemums at the market, I marvel at their colours, sizes, the petals so light, fluffy and so full of colour. Some are almost as big as my palm. Sturdy flowers for a balmy winter -    so complete by themselves! Nature's masterclass in painting and an inspiration for some of the greatest painters! Above: Monet's two famous paintings and some real life flowers.

Well, it is officially about the near end of Autumn as I write this post. I have spent the past few weeks being awed by the different hues of yellow, oranges, reds, purples and browns, as trees shed their foliage and the pumpkins and nuts, clementines, carrots and beets, dahlias and chrysanthemums make their appearance. A final burst of colour before the landscape turns pristine white, broken only by the brown-black tree branches! The gray days feel like twilight as nature starts to turn off the lights and the fog, a collective contended sigh before a well earned rest!