My mandarin tree

I was born in Latvia. I remember days in winter when the temperatures reached -30C (-22F), I think I remember one day in the summer when it was about +30C (86F) but maybe I am just imagining. On average, summer temperatures are about 20-25C (upper 60sF). And it rains. A LOT. Most of the time. In the summer. In the fall. In the winter. In the spring. I remember rain the most. When I left Latvia at the age of 18, I remember thinking that if I never saw rain or snow again, I would be perfectly fine with that.

Latvia is still my home in my heart. It always will be. I feel it deep in my bones. It is so familiar. Despite the rain, despite the cold, I love it from the depths of my heart. It will never change.

My whole life I have wanted to live in a country where there are palm trees growing on the streets. It was a bit of an unreachable dream. Until my hubby and I decided that what the heck - why wouldn't we move to the subtropical Brisbane, Australia?! And so we did. And I love it.

Recently we stopped by nursery and picked out this mandarin tree. It is happily growing on our balcony now and catching the sunrays to ripen the fruit.



More than just the pretty colours of the fruit and the joy that it gives me every time I look at it, it represents answered prayers for adventure in my life. It represents God hearing my prayers for travelling the world. It represents my dreams coming fulfilled - I am living in a country with palm trees as part of the city landscape. I feel blessed.