Lilac Time

I can't think of a more magical time in my neighborhood than the end of May, when the scent of lilacs permeates the air. I took my dog for a walk this afternoon and came home high on lilacs. You can have your drug of choice, but I'll take lilacs every time.

Here, where spring comes late, if it comes at all, there is an established progression among the flowering trees and shrubs. The forsythia comes first, followed by the cherries and magnolias, then the apples, crab apples, quince and redbud trees, then finally the lilacs. I love them all, but in my book, the lilacs are the best.

When I was a kid, people around here brought lilacs to the cemeteries for Memorial Day. There was a special holder for them, a cone-shaped green metal thing with two prongs at the bottom. You stuck it in the ground by means of the prongs, poured in water, then put the cut lilacs in the container. When you visited the cemetery, no matter what other pots of flowers or wreaths you might see, there were always bouquets of lilacs all around. After a while, the people who ran the cemeteries didn't want the lilacs in their metal containers, but some people continued to bring them for years. I don't know if they sell those metal containers anymore. Maybe people used to bring them home and reuse them. They looked fine, much better than coffee cans wrapped in aluminum foil, which you also saw in those days.

Back then, you mostly saw the common blue lilacs, which grow into trees after a while. They are everywhere in my neighborhood, but they seem to be challenged now by white, pink, and even deep purple varieties, which are eye-catching and beautiful. None of them has the intoxicating scent of the blue lilacs, however, and those are my favorites. The scent of lilacs is amazing. I don't mean that air freshener smell or the perfumed candle smell that is supposed to be lilac. No, I mean the scent of real lilacs outside in the fresh air on a cool but sunny day in May. Superb, and more or less free, thanks to my neighbors who planted them.

And the best thing about lilac time in Oswego is that it lasts for quite a while. Even when the flowers begin to fade, the scent lingers and the colors take on a new cast and continue to adorn the neighborhood. And when lilac time is over, it's time for the bridal wreath spireas to bloom. No scent, but lovely all the same. How lucky we are to live here!