I have a small bubble in Italy in which I live— it’s my street.  It isn’t a long street, maybe 7 minutes to stroll to the other end of it, but it is a good little street.  I am glad I moved off the military base and onto this little street, into the beauty of Italy in May. The flowers and fragrance on my street have been unbelievable.  My favorite is the jasmine– it is everywhere, spreading its fragrance everywhere in the air and especially through my open windows.  Things grow here, fast.  My neighbor has a small vegetable garden that I look at when I stroll past, and it seems to double in size daily.

Below are photos I took from a recent walk on my street.  Crazily, these are just the flowers growing on the gates surrounding the neighbors’ yards… which means inside their yards there are more, and more, and more flowers and smells.  Here the gates are big and provide security and privacy, so I can’t see through into the worlds of beauty behind them.  I wish I could!  But, still, every night I walk through this beauty and breathe deeply.