Another trip to the Heimat  had me take a few shots of the area of Franconia (northern Bavaria) a.k.a. as Beer Country.

sunflower fields lining the roadside

grapes and geraniums on German homes

vegetable patches around the village of Sennfeld

Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in.
- Robert Frost -

One of the things I brought back from Japan a long time ago was a new perspective on common items.

The first time I saw spaghetti served like a sandwich on a bread roll in Japan, my thoughts went from culinary shock to sheer amazement. I learned then you could take two common items and put them together in a new form, you’ve got an invention.

The one below is not a new one, but it had been for me at that time. I saw the Japanese housewife trimming pretty blossoms off otherwise dead plants and placing them in water in a color contrasting bowl.

Japanese aesthetics

This is what I did today with a dead bouquet and an antique Imari bowl brought back from Japan. I enjoyed this part of recycling and recreating.
The Story of Imari: The Symbols and Mysteries of Antique Japanese Porcelain from Amazon.com

Our forest garden, after almost four weeks of continuous rain, looks a bit like a jungle.

Forest gardening in Germany

Wild flowers, such as lily of the valley are thriving in the permanent shade under the trees, and ferns are coming up in many new spots.

lily of the valley or Maiglöckchen in German

While searching for more photo opportunities, I found this little prisoner below.

A captive lily of the valley

One fallen dead leaf hindered the young leaves from unfolding. What’s worse – I took the photo and then walked away, forgetting to rid the plant of its strangler. My mind was deeply preoccupied with interpreting this situation, with too much focus on confinement, instead of freedom.