Our first California poppy of the year

Poppies have always had such a special place in my heart, ever since I first saw fields of red poppies.

I was a little girl at the time, visiting Europe with my mother and sister.

Since I was born and raised in the tropics, I had never seen poppies before.

Their delicate, ethereal beauty left such an impression on me, that in the autumn we are always strewing poppy seeds around the garden.

California poppies are hardier, and they seem to do best in a lot of sun and where they are free to reseed.

Here is our first one of the year, in the afternoon sunshine.

Here is the same poppy in the morning sun.