IMAGES FROM A TOWN GARDEN
by contemplativeinquiry
Tumbledown gatehouse
Unbothered to impress:
You draw my eyes.
A single bloom
Among spiky grasses
Insists on beauty.
Six hundred years
In the life of this carving:
How much has changed?
Across the road,
Restrained elegance.
Here, a bursting life.
The lushness of spring:
Who can resist
Its fleeting appearance?
NOTE: At the beginning of April I discovered Hillfield Gardens – a little outside the centre of Gloucester, yet still in easy walking distance (or an easy bus ride) from where I live. Originally the gardens of a large house, Hillfield Gardens are about 1.6 hectares in extent. They are managed by a Friends Group on behalf of Gloucestershire County Council. For me the gardens are a tranquil space, different in feeling-tone from other local parks. Beyond that I don’t yet have a narrative about the gardens – more a set of discreet impressions. The pictures and words above are an attempt to share these impressions. The third picture is a detail from an 18th century gazebo using architectural details from a 14th century market house in Westgate Street demolished in 1780.