章 37: Spring

After the bustling New Year's festivities, spring arrived slowly. That morning, Hana stepped out into the small courtyard in front of her house to stretch her limbs. It was then she noticed a spring jasmine shrub in a corner of the yard. Its tender yellow blossoms had bloomed overnight, covering every branch. Outside the courtyard, she saw the jasmine's branches drooping over the fence.

"The spring jasmine is in bloom," said her neighbor, Mrs. Yoshita, with a smile, standing in her own yard. She held a bunch of freshly cut jasmine branches. Her yard also housed jasmine, but unlike the solitary shrub in Hana's yard, Mrs. Yoshita's fence was almost a waterfall of jasmine blooms. Hana had wondered how it would look when it bloomed, and now, she found it exceptionally beautiful, even though not all the flowers had opened yet. She marveled at how Mrs. Yoshita managed to grow such lush blossoms.