Although I wrote my second book on Mozart at age twelve, I have found I equally love Vivaldi.  Contrary to some music critics, I do not believe all his works sound the same.  “The Four Seasons” has long been one of my favorite classical pieces.  It is a group of four violin concerti, each of which gives a musical expression to a season of the year.  We were lucky enough to have stayed in a hotel in Venice where Vivaldi actually taught.  This picture was taken at the resort which has the same name so I suppose that is what triggered my line of thought.  On either side of the entrance at least 50 of these bowls hung seemingly invisibly suspended, all filled with a single beautiful orchid.  They swayed with the breeze coming in and the effect was magical.  If we had room for it (which we don’t) I would love to do this in our home.  While we were there I felt as if we were experiencing a bit of all four seasons at once.  The exquisite flowers reminded me of spring, the big pool outside brought summer to mind, the chilly wind blowing all the bowls made me think of autumn, and they had a big fire burning outside which of course was because it is still winter.  The American three-time Olympic gold medalist in bicycle racing, Kristin Armstrong, said:

“When the seasons shift, even the subtle beginning, the scent of a promised change, I feel something stir inside me.  Hopefulness?  Gratitude?  Openness?  Whatever it is, it’s welcome.”

I have always felt the same way and I look forward to the changing of each of the four seasons.