A host of golden daffodils

 There are not many lessons I remember from my childhood but learning William Wordsworth's poem at the age of 9 is one of that sticks vividly in my memory :-

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.


Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.


The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:



For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Picking daffodils!
Picking daffodils by Harold Harvey taken from pinterest
What poem do you remember most from your childhood?

With all the sunshine we have had in the past week the daffodils seem to have emerged on mass. On Saturday we wandered around the village of Burton Bradstock and everywhere there were daffodils nodding their yellow heads, as we walked by.  They were lining paths to front doors and crammed into tiny spaces to add a shot of spring colour and sweet smell. See if you can spot them in the pictures below :-




 The bench under the tree looks a good place to sit and admire the view.


The pace of life in the village is so much slower. Strangers have time to say "hello" as you walk past. The loudest sounds are of birdsong or the church chiming each quarter of an hour.



The lanes have long forgotten meanings this one is called Donkey Lane. There may be no donkeys in sight but there are views of typical Dorset thatched cottages.



Although my favourite spring flower are tulips, daffodils come a close second. What are your favourite spring flower? Have you come across Ingrid's inspirational blog called Of Spring and Summer  it shows wonderful ideas and images of ways of arranging seasonal flowers.

A house with daffodils in it is a house lit up,
whether or no the sun be shining outside. 
~ A.A. Milne


Thank you as always for visiting me. I hope you find some flowers to brighten your week too.
Sarah x

Comments

  1. A lovely post! "Daffodils" is one I remember from childhood too.
    Isn`t it wonderful to see daffodils flowering in the sun after all those weeks of rain and grey skies!

    Burton Bradstock looks such a pretty, peaceful village.

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  2. How delightful are the daffodils ~ thanks so much for this share !

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  3. What a perfectly illustrated ode to the daffodil.

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  4. Such beautiful images, daffodils are my second favorite flowers with sunflowers being my number 1. Yes I have a thing for yellow flowers they just make me so happy.

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  5. Oh Sarah, first of all, your country....it is strikingly beautiful. We here dream to go to such places where cottages are REAL and not forced or fabricated. Fields of daffodils are only a dream for now, but in about another 6 weeks, we should see them.

    I am ashamed to say that my elementary education was very week. We were never taught to memorize poetry, and I didn't engage in that practice until well into my 40s for my French studies. But this poem is a breeze of fresh air for me. Thank you!

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  6. Delightful photos Sarah. I love daffodils especially outdoors en masse and when the sun illuminates their petals. I love Ingrid's blog - thanks for suggesting it. Have a great week xo

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  7. Such a lovely, quaint village. My favorite spring flowers are the small wildflowers, like Henbit, that give the fields a purple glow.

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  8. Hello Sarah, I enjoyed reading your poem about daffodils. You can find them everywhere along your walk in the small village. I am sure they brighten every ones spirits when ones gaze upon them. My favorite Spring Flower is the crocuses. They are the first ones I see in the Spring and they truly make me happy to see them. When I used to walk through the village I lived in while living in Europe I used to Love listening to the ancient church bells ringing and as one walks everyone would say Good Day. Thanks for sharing your lovely photos. Hugs Judy

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  9. Thank you for one of my favourite poems (and yes, I can recite it by heart), illustrated with such precious daffodil images!

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  10. Oh how gorgeous! My childhood memory of daffodils is walking through a wild field of them. There is a photo of me and a friend sitting amongst them, two little girls swamped by them all. One day I will walk these laneways of Dorset! Have a lovely new week Sarah x

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  11. What a beautiful sight! It's so nice to see Spring arrive in your part of the world. I'm not familiar with the poem but it is lovely, sums up the cheery Daffodil perfectly. It's Banjo Paterson's poem "The Man from Snowy River" that I remember learning as a child first. Have a lovely week. Mel x

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  12. Your daffodils are flowering now? Wonderful. I have only three - the root vole is killing all of them. Each year I plant new - no chance.
    Your Pictures are so inspirering. Beautiful Britain. I come in 10 days, but not in your village.

    Sigrun

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  13. What a lovely village! that's one thing I remember my time in England is the daffodils

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  14. I don't know anyone who doesn't love daffodils - they certainly cheer me up. Lovely pictures Sarah - this spring is turning out to be rather as good one isn't it.

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  15. What a beautiful village Sarah and so many lovely daffodils too, make me quite envious as I don't think I'll have any this year for some reason.

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  16. I have a shocking memory for poems so can't add to the collection I'm afraid. I think tulips are probably my favourite too. I'm pretty fond of aconites as well. What a beautiful village, it looks like it would almost be impossible to rush there! Juliex

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  17. They look beautiful in the sun don't they? Lovely looking village too x

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  18. I love daffodils they are one of my favourite flowers. They are just starting to come out now here in the north and I buy a few bunches every week from the supermarket.

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  19. Good morning, Sarah! As I was clearing away garden debris early last week I discovered the tips of daffodils in my garden, but this morning they are covered by 4 inches of snow which will continue another 6 hours before it moves on--hopefully, until NEXT winter. We have not seen this long of a continuous snow season in this part of Maryland EVER (or at least in the 45 years we've been here). The last patch of snow finally melted 2 days ago and Mother Nature saw fit to replenish it. What I'm trying to say in a round about way is your lovely post is very much appreciated this morning! :-) The poem, your photos, your thoughts about the daffodils have all helped me to be a little more patient for the arrival of Spring here. For me, it is Robert Frost's poems I remember most from my childhood. His "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening", which he actually wrote on a hot summer morning after being up all night writing another poem, is one of my favorites. He stepped outside to view the sunrise and the idea came to him suddenly. He wrote it all down within a few minutes!

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  20. Your photos are beautiful like a poem Sarah! The flowering English landscape, the old cottages on a sunny day, it's really dreamy! I love tulips too but daffodils are so special!

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  21. Hello Sarah, how beautiful is your Spring! Thank you that I can enjoy it from across the pond. It has not hit here in The Great Lakes yet....

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  22. Such a wonderful post, Sarah. The pictures of the daffodils, the thatched cottage, the village, the poem...all lovely. The poem I remember the most from childhood is The Swing by R.L. Stevenson.

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  23. That village looks so peaceful. It's such a lovely part of the country. xx

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  24. It looks like a very pleasant village. I enjoyed your photos.

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  25. A lovely poem - and the charming village. Those thatched roofs, ahh, just so quaint. I hope that we shall have some blooms in a week or so. The photo with the trees and the bench is magnificent. xo Kim

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  26. Sadly Sarah the Highlands only saw 2 days of sunshine, so all the daffodils in my garden are still in bud and been battered by wind and rain. My favourite has to be the snow drop.....sadly the vole/mice in the garden obviously like them too as had none this year :-(
    Annie x

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  27. Everything about this post was beautiful! What a lovely poem thank you for sharing it. I'll certainly be looking into some more of William Wordsworth's work. The Lake Isle of Innis Free by W.B. Yeats has been my favourite poem ever since I was a child.

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  28. All things bright and beautiful....

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  29. Such a tranquil village which must have been a delight to visit. I love that poem too and your stunning photos that accompanied it.

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  30. What a delightful post! The poem, the flowers, the photos, the village – everything sing of spring. I enjoyed it very much.

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  31. So pretty. The village looks postcard-perfect. I love these poems too. The ones I remember best from childhood are the one about the robin ("the north wind doth blow...") and another one called Something Told the Wild Geese. I learned them both by heart at a young age and never forgot them because the images are beautiful.

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  32. From time to time my father, a research poultry farmer, would spontaneously begin reciting a poem he had learned as a child. I was so impressed! While at the moment I can not recall any poems I learned a a child, I am impressed with the wonderful poem you memorized and the beautiful post you created, Sarah. Daffodils are not my favorite Spring flower, but deep purple primroses or violets contend for that position. xx

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  33. What a delightful tour! We are fortunate to live in Skagit Valley, Washington State, where there are huge fields of daffodils and tulips grown commercially. But nothing beats a naturalized garden. Also love Lily of the Valley, well just about any flower! Your photos are so lovely, thanks for sharing them with us.

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  34. Daffodils are the real sign that spring has come. I have some beautiful smelling daffodils at the house, but when I dug up some bulbs and replanted them at the allotment, they still flowered but with no smell :( xxx

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  35. Lovely photos - must take a trip to BBradstock soon. Daffs have to be my favourite Spring flower (always remind me of Wales). Now your mention of poems got me thinking. I learned 'When you are old and grey' WB Yeats when I was about 9 or 10. I thought it was the most beautiful poem, capturing the essence of everlasting true love, though with a certain melancholy. I've never forgotten the words. The sun is up this morning, though rain in the forecast for later in the week - I've actually been watering my post of bulbs outside the front door!!

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  36. And you, always make me want to go to the coast of England, to go amble on cobblestone streets and to BUY A WESTIE! Thank you dearest Sarah, for coming by. Anita

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  37. Good Morning Sarah, What a beautiful site and a wonderful fond memory of childhood. Spring brings new hope and dreams for us gardeners. Such a lovely place you live. For Spring, it would be roses, because here where I live they they are almost the first to bloom in my garden, followed up with larkspurs, daffodils, poppies and paper whites. What a gorgeous painting too. Have fun in the sun!
    Blessings,
    Bobbie Lynn

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  38. Came here from Cathys blog to sight your lovely daffodils. They must be the universal greeting party to Spring! From my window here in the Southeastern part of America, I see a lovely gathering of Daffs along the creek bank, and more along my garden edges. I only remember a few poems from my childhood," Who has seen the Wind", "The Raven" and a silly poem that went like this.."yesterday upon the stair, I saw a man who wasn't there, he wasn't there again today, Oh how I wish he'd go away!." Not exactly as moving as your favorite poem.!My favorite Spring flower is a Virginia Bluebell.

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  39. lovely spring impressions dear Sarah. My favorite spring flowers are little pansies in soft colors, but actually every flower which announces spring is beautiful. I`m looking forward to my little spring border, which I planted in the last autum.
    Wishing you a wonderful spring time!
    Bine

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  40. Daffodils are just a wee bit too showy to be a favourite of mine, but no less glorious for that, and one of the poems I remember best from childhood is A A Milne's paean to the daffodil ... I adored that little verse.

    Wild violets, they are my favourite spring flower.

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  41. I'm visiting from Cathy's post. How lovely and lucky you are to have such beauty around. We are still snow covered and anxiously awaiting spring! Your photography is amazing! Enjoy your day! ♥

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  42. My favourite Spring flower are Tulips. I have loads of them growing steadily away in the garden. I think the first poem I remember is The Dolly On The Dustcart by Pam Ayres. My Auntie Maralyn had a recording of her, and I always listened to it when I visited.

    Leanne xx

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  43. Dear Sarah,

    This is one of the lovliest blog posts I've seen in a while! How eloquent are your daffodil pictures and in true Wordsworth style I have felt quite nostalgic for the beauty that is England; you've portrayed that so well.

    I love early spring flowers. There is a little garden at a crossroad just outside our village which used to belong to an elderly gentleman but is not being tended by his middle-aged daughter. I always love looking at it every day as there are so many wild spring flowers growing there - primroses, violets (my favourites), periwinkles, cowslips too - mixed in with daffodils and tulips. They all make me so happy and they are all so ephemeral.

    I cannot call to mind a poem from my schooldays just now but the Bayeux Tapestry was a leitmotif to my primary days :-)

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  44. There are lots of daffodils here, too, looking beautiful in the sunshine. I had to learn the Wordsworth poem myself at school for a public speaking exam and can still recite most of it now!
    I couldn't choose between primroses, crocuses and hellebores for a favourite spring flower. But if bluebells are considered spring flowers - then it's native bluebells!

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  45. Dear Sarah...
    This is lovely, lovely post...
    Spring flowers are natures promise of all that is to follow...
    Crocus for me take my breath away.....
    They remind me of my child hood, and Easter time, which is my most favourite time of year..
    The beautiful poem by Wordsworth, I know so very well...
    My Mama could recite this poem, even when she couldn't remember the days and some times us...
    It is of course very close to my heart..
    Thank you for this lovely post...
    Hugs Maria x

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  46. The daffs have gone mad here in Sussex, too. There is a sunny bank near Winchelsea where the daffs come out in January.... this year they delayed a bit because of the wet, but they have been blooming busily since early February.

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  47. Enid Blytons poem called February, as that's the month I was born and I was a huge fan as a child and read all her books. Crocus is my favourite spring flower. Thank you for a lovely post so cheery on this sunny morning before work.

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  48. Such a lovely village on your photo's Sarah! And the garden in the last photo is truly enchanting! I would have loved to join you on your walk!

    Have a lovely evening!

    Madelief x

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  49. Dear Sarah,

    Beautiful post and I enjoyed seeing all the gorgeous daffodils and pretty village - you must be so happy that Spring is there.
    I have always enjoyed the William Wordsworth's poem.
    hugs
    Carolyn

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  50. I love this post and all those beautiful daffodils!

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  51. I love all the cottages along the way. Do you live these? What a darling little village. I am following your lovely blog.

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