The return of the water...

The rain started the process and eventually man – in the shape of the building agents – completed it; although my belief is that nature would have got there in the end.

You may remember that last year the lake outside my office sprang a leak and was completely drained. Fish were moved, plants left to die, and the once beautiful water-filled lake became a parched, mud-cracked, and empty caricature of an African watering hole.

It stayed that way for a while and then nature, in the form of the horrible wet summer last year, did her thing and the lake began to fill up again - not fully to the top but at least half-way and what a difference that made.

After Christmas, when we had all that snow and ice, the pond froze - but when the spring arrived I began to notice that the rushes were returning, greening up and getting taller. A few weeks ago I saw the first signs of tiny Lilly pads on the surface of the lake and a trio of ducks, two drakes and a female, were swimming around chasing each other in a flurried courtship.

Nature was winning.

Lat week the process was made complete. I don’t know who and I don’t know why, but when I came into the office on Friday the lake had been made full to brimming and there were a pair of Canada geese waddling around its edges.

I’ve yet to see if the irises and other water plants return, a couple of footballs and some litter needs netting out, and the lilies have re-submerged with the rising of the water (but they’ll be back) and I saw a damsel fly, the first of the year, flash emerald green past my office window.

I wonder when fish will reappear again.