Roses in Summer - "Oh to be in England"

A stroll along a high street and nearby roads of suburban houses shows you colourful roses and pretty party balloons.

I once held a birthday party for our son, aged under ten, in this street. Further along was another family who had upstaged up by putting lots of large balloons outside their house for their birthday.  

I was teaching English to a Japanese lady who visited my house every week and I invited her daughter to the party. The little girl didn't come to the party. 

We had just waved goodbye to the last guest when the mother arrived looking flustered. The little girl looked apprehensive. The Japanese lady apologised profusely for their arriving late and because the birthday gift wrapping had been torn open and re-sellotaped. Why?

The mother had sent her sister to take the little girl to the party. Seeing balloons, the Japanese aunty, who spoke no English, pushed the little girl inside the door and waved goodbye. The little girl, who knew nobody, had sat silently throughout the party, for two hours, surrounded by other guests and parents who also wondered who she was. Finally, the Japanese mother arrived and had to ask for the present back, and make two sets of apologies.

If you are not invited to the party, enjoy the colours of the balloons and the colours of summer flowers. England is enjoying a heatwave in summer 2016.

Pink rose.

Orange rose.

These roses are in my garden in England.  Looking at my pictures, I am reminded of the saying, 'less is more'. Sometimes a large picture of one rose is better than a distant view of lots of tiny ones.

If you want to see more roses, you could visit a national garden. The Gardens of the Rose are near St Albans in Hertfordshire. You can see the gardens and heir gift shop on line. Look at this website of the Royal National Rose Society:

http://www.rnrs.org.uk

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.