Pink is the color of spring in DC.

I suppose that pink is a common spring color, but I have never been as overwhelmed by its presence as I have this year in DC.

Obviously, everyone thinks of the pink cherry blossom trees, but as I have whined about several times, they came early and died quickly. When I got back from spring break, this was what was left: 

But I have a secret: other than in concentrated areas (like the Tidal Basin) where they draw strength in numbers, I am not that impressed by the cherry blossoms. They are pinkish, but not as brilliant as the crab apple trees that overwhelm you with their bright pink bushy flowers, looking like natural cotton candy. Or the japenese magnolias that boast stately pink leaves that lose there smell quickly, as if in punishment, if you have the audacity to pluck them from a tree.

Or these trees, the redbud tree (I think – gardener, I am not.), who are so impatient to fill the world with color that they sprout flowers the entire length of their trunks, not just at the end of their branches.

The magazine Real Simple recently had a great article about tree loving of this type. Colette (a French author whom I love) once wrote to her mother asking that she come visit, but her mother declined, explaining that her favorite tree was in bloom. Rather than being annoyed, Colette later explained that she was proud to be the daughter of the woman that wrote that letter. Looking at trees like these makes me understand both Colette and her mother.