After a rather long and dreary winter, spring finally comes to us here in the city, delayed but all the more welcome for it. To gear up for a distance race later this year, I’m hitting the pavement again after a few years of inconsistent fitness. On my regular jogs up and down the Muddy River, the tree-lined path is carpeted in violets and bluets, and a procession of flowering shrubs and trees greet the eye as the month continues: forsythia, pear, and crabapple; serviceberry, dogwood, and plum. It’s taken awhile for me to get to know my neighbourhood trees here in the suburbs, even though we are nearly at the four-year anniversary of our move up to Boston. Unlike our Baltimore era, which was marked by some stability (eight years as students/trainees, largely inhabiting one apartment and living one lifestyle), our time in Brookline has been one of rapid and accelerating change. One year emerging from the pandemic, another year as new homeowners, the next as new parents. It’s only now, in the fourth year, that we finally seem to have achieved something resembling a pattern, a lifeway. Jordan, meanwhile, is changing even more rapidly. Now walking independently and babbling more and more incessantly each day, our newly minted toddler is a joy to be around. He’s constantly smiling, giggling at almost everything we do around the house, off-tunedly singing the melody of “Baa Baa Black Sheep” before he goes down for his naps. Worse yet, he’s funny and he knows it. He knows just how to wobble, make a face, pretend to fall backward from the windowsill or into our arms, to make us laugh. He’s starting to become more demanding about his wishes and wants, starting to catch big feelings when we say no — but never for long, as we are usually able to get him to laugh about something else within a few minutes. Perhaps he’ll lose his sense of humour someday. Something tells me he never will.
———
This month has been marked by a number of outings to enjoy the increasingly fine spring weather, and to photograph some of nature’s beauty just as I used to do in Maryland:
April 14, 2024: A mid-day outing to Crystal Lake in Newton, marking Jordan’s second time ever riding the T. We grab some desserts at Lakon Paris Patisserie in Newton Highlands (a tiramisu cup and a coconut/mango/passionfruit mousse), which we bring with us to a lakeside picnic table along with fruit, tater tots, fishsticks, and onigiri packed from home (ostensibly for Jordan’s lunch, but we wind up sharing everything). It’s a lovely spot for us to enjoy the weather and for Jordan to watch the passing Green Line trains - until rain starts to fall, that is.
April 27, 2024: Jane’s parents visit us for the weekend. On Saturday, we take a morning walk at the Arnold Arboretum, climbing up to Bussey Hill before circling the park and taking some photos with Jordan beneath a cherry tree in full bloom. In the afternoon after Jordan’s long nap, we go out to the library and a nearby park.
April 28, 2024: After heading to the Franklin Park Zoo with Jane’s parents, in the afternoon we take a local walk and play with Jordan at our nearby playground.
