Look who blossoms, yet again in mid-winter! Here in South Africa, July is the second month of the season, but the weather is mostly autumnal, with crisp and clear days: misty in the morning, but later sunny.

Seeing the pear tree covered in flowers this early should come as no surprise, yet the sight never ceases to amaze. Naturally, I recited to it “A Pear Tree”—and I think it approved of my modest effort to praise it.