The pleasure of our gardens: Welcoming the spring equinox to our backyard garden

Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose. ~ Gertrude Stein

How lovely a rose smells when left on its stem.

Spring's recent arrival in the Northern Hemisphere offers all of us a chance for reflection as we begin our break away from winter and welcome the new season.

Maybe it's just me, but it seems as if the sun's just a bit warmer and the flowers are a little brighter than they were just a week or two ago.

Speaking of flowers ...

Springtime means new growth for our rose bushes. Our First Prize rose bush has been an early bloomer this year and, at the time of this writing, we have five First Prize roses blooming.

As a caretaker and devoted photographer of nine rose bushes that shine brilliantly throughout much of the year in our backyard garden, my appreciation for roses has grown exponentially over the 14-plus years I have resided in the foothills above Oakland in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Roses have become an everyday part of my life, and in photographing and sharing them with my friends via my Facebook page, I have gained a new appreciation for their colorful beauty and their fragrance, too.

Remember, it's always about how lovely a rose smells when left on its stem.

Photograph of First Prize rose by Michael Dickens © 2014.

Picasso: He wanted to be a painter ...

Pablo Picasso / "Give me a museum and I'll fill it."

"Give me a museum and I'll fill it," said Pablo Picasso, arguably the most compelling figure of 20th century modern art.

The Spanish artist wanted to become a painter and, instead, he became Picasso.

"Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musee National Picasso, Paris" is an exhibition of "Picasso's Picassos." An extraordinary group of 150 paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints are currently on display in a special exhibition at the de Young Fine Arts Museum in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park through Oct. 9.

Portrait of Dora Maar
(Oil on canvas, 1937)

It's a good month for Picasso lovers as "The Steins Collect: Matisse, Picasso, and the Parisian Avant-Garde," an exhibition showcasing the collections of Gertrude Stein and her siblings, major figures in the early 20th century Bohemian Paris, is on display at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art through Sept. 6. Among the 40 Picasso highlights are: Lady With a Fan and Boy Leading a Horse.

Earlier this month, I took the opportunity to visit the de Young to gaze at the genius of Picasso and see for myself why looking at a painting by Picasso is like a form of magic.

Among the many memorable moments for me were: The Spanish Civil War and The Weeping Woman, Portrait of Dora Maar, Still Life with Pitcher and Apples, The Matador, and my favorite, Chat saisissant un oiseau (Cat Catching a Bird).

A Picasso quote that appeared overhead in one of the gallery rooms read: "Painting is just another way of keeping a diary." Another spelled out: "Painting is stronger than me. It makes me do what it wants."

Picasso at the de Young / A fresh, revealing perspective 

Well, I am happy to say that I came away with a new, refreshing and revealing perspective of Picasso.

The man could paint.

"It took me four years to paint like Raphael but a lifetime to paint like a child," said Picasso.

And, little did I realize until that lively Friday evening, Picasso had a sense of humor, too.