Spring comes to Forest Hill Station

Until I researched it for this post, I had no idea our local Muni station, Forest Hill Station is one of the oldest in the land. It was built in 1916-18 as part of the tunnel under Twin Peaks, which actually emerges at West Portal. [Edited to Add: The two pictures of the station aren’t mine, they’re in the public domain. The first one is from 1917, the other from 2006.]

What inspired this post wasn’t the building (though it’s a beautiful one, often ignored as we drive past). It was the garden behind it, in spring. 

The cherry trees that line the back of the property were in ethereal bloom, and their beauty was echoed in daisies that covered the lush green lawn like a drift of snowflakes. The sky was blue and fluffed with clouds. The whole scene was picture-book pretty.

We pulled up half a block forward, and I ran back to take these photographs…

These two pictures are the last ones ever from this camera. It’s been a forgiving gadget. I’ve thrust it into my purse, jammed it in my jeans pocket, even taken it out in a drizzle. But as I backed away to take one last shot, I dropped it on the concrete sidewalk with its lens out. What camera would tolerate that? Goodbye, Nikon Coolpix.

[Edited to Add: I’m glad I did get those photographs. When we drove by there today, the cherry blossoms were past their prime with the leaves coming in — and the daisies had been mown away.]