I’m not sure when the Northern Lights captured my imagination. Maybe when I was in my 30s. Whatever the case, for a hell of a long time I’ve wanted to see them up close and personal, not just on YouTube videos or on television documentaries. They (and their counterpart, the Southern Lights) can be spectacles of the highest order, as we all know. However, to satisfy this craving I’d have to head to Alaska, Iceland or the like in late autumn or in winter, which is when the light displays generally are at their best. Most likely, that would entail enduring ass-numbing temperatures, something I once would have been okay with but am not at all keen on anymore. So, I have a feeling the craving will go unfulfilled.
Well, I can live with that. But I sure wouldn’t want my life to be spectacle-less. Over the last 30 or thereabouts years, I’ve developed a powerful need to be thrilled and awed on a somewhat regular basis by one spectacle or another. By sunsets, for instance, many of which I’ve witnessed during that span. Man, good sunsets are jaw-droppers, right? They are so inspiring and beautiful, you can hardly believe they are real. The same goes, of course, for sunrises. But not many of them have unfolded before my eyes, as I am not a fan of dragging my previously referred-to ass out of the house at ungodly early hours.
And I can’t get enough of energized ocean waters, either. Watching and listening to waves develop and roll to shore puts me in a hypnotic sort of state. I engage in this activity frequently on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where my wife Sandy and I have vacationed almost annually since 1998. I purposely overdose on it, in fact, since our permanent home, in Pennsylvania, is nowhere near the ocean. By doing so, the magic of the Cape’s ocean waters stays with me for several months after I’m back home.
Not every spectacle that rings my bell mightily is Nature-made, though. I’m into fireworks, which, when superior, are a fairly good rival, I suppose, to the Northern and Southern Lights. And in recent years I’ve enjoyed the Philadelphia Flower Show, a famed annual event that, out of ignorance, I pooh-poohed for decades before mending my ways.
Now, I’m not a gardener in any meaningful sense. Sandy and I own a home whose grounds I try to maintain halfway decently. Meaning, I mow, rake and prune — rudimentary tasks — to the best of my limited abilities. But I don’t plant or transplant flora, or nurture them in any way. That’s why I paid no attention whatsoever to the Philadelphia Flower Show (PFS) until 2016, when Sandy and I, kind of just for the heck of it, decided to give the production a whirl. It hooked me immediately, not because I found myself inspired to create flower beds at home or to learn the ins and outs of horticulture, but because it was spectacular. Imaginative installations and wide palettes of colors abounded. I’m proud to say I’ve returned to the flower show five times since my inaugural visit.
Though not quite as swell as some previous years’ extravaganzas, PFS’s 2025 version, held in a cavernous convention center in downtown Philadelphia, damn well was plenty good enough. Sandy and I visited the multi-day event two weeks ago, exploring the display areas for two hours, at which point we ran out of gas.
As always, I happily succumbed to the bright colors — of flowers, light installations and other design elements — that filled the hall. They got my juices flowing. And the PFS environment was a welcoming one, too, for, as had been the case on our previous visits, the show attracted a broad spectrum of people. Young and old. Black and white. Mobile and disabled. It felt good to be part of an inclusive community. Inclusion is where it’s at.
More spectacles are on the horizon this year. Flowering trees, magnolias initially, I think, probably will begin to bloom in my area in early April, possibly before then. Is there anyone who doesn’t like their enormous masses of blossoms? Also during spring, Sandy and I will return to Cape Cod. There, ocean waters and unobstructed sunsets, among other natural delights, will be on view. I can barely wait to soak all of this in.
Yeah, Another Blogger 
We saw the northern lights a lot in Ireland in the last year. We’ll more our bright, us only a couple of times because we were never out at the weight time. I still would like to go to Iceland to see them though
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Hi. I’m pretty sure the Northern Lights haven’t been visible in my region (I live in southeast Pennsylvania). But if they have been, I’m sure they were very faint. Take care. Have a good week!!
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And you ☺️
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Although fireworks can be spectacular, I personally find them a little scary and unsettling. But a good flower show – now that’s something I can get into. And I did. Just last week. The North Carolina Museum of Art puts on a show every spring called Art in Bloom. How they choose participants is unknown to me but each one is given a piece of art in the museum to use as inspiration for their floral creation. Some of them are absolute masterpieces and actually reflect the original artwork perfectly – sometimes a painting; sometimes a sculpture. Some of them leave me scratching my head and wondering exactly what they were looking at. All in all, it is a lovely way to spend time with friends. And even if the arrangement doesn’t look anything like the piece of art its supposed to represent, the flowers are always nice – regardless.
Happy Spring!
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Hi, Linda. The show you went to sounds really good. I imagine it was very popular. Just about everyone likes flowers!
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This is a pretty amazing planet, Neil, with no end to spectacular beauty and awe. I did get to see the northern lights last fall, and love the “alien” world under the sea. Sunsets and sunrises go without saying. Each flower is a work of art, and I can imagine that the flower shows are stunning. I haven’t been to one, but I know I’d love it. Great photos. 🙂
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I totally agree. Planet Earth is a wonderland. The variety of lifeforms is mind-boggling. The waters and lands are incredible. What a place!
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Perfect crafted for human life if we allow it to flourish.
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Neil — I saw the northern lights in my backyard a couple months ago! It was spectacular. I saw them again about 22 years ago. Same deal. They are not like what you could see in Alaska, sure, but seeing them was amazing and now I want the whole light show.
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Hi. I wonder if they were visible in my area, which isn’t impossibly far from yours. If they were, I never heard about it.
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I live behind a hundred acre farm so I stood out in the field and watched them. It might be harder to see in a neighborhood with trees if it was there.
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I can’t wait for all the spectacular of the flowers to arrive. Nature puts on the best of shows.
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Absolutely.
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You could visit Saskatchewan. The Northern Lights were amazing last summer/fall and very visible from my backyard despite light pollution from the city.
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Hi. You were fortunate to see such a great sight. I don’t know who this is, by the way. You’re listed as Anonymous.
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I’m with you, love watching the ocean waves and sunsets in Cape Cod. That flower shop looks pretty wonderful.
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Hi Ruth. Right, Cape Cod is a perfect place for taking in sunsets and the ocean. The Cape is great!
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Just finished a Teddy Roosevelt Bio. he talked about the beautiful man made cathedrals etc he had visited around the world but he talked about (and never took for granted) the even more awe inspiring beauty of nature. I’m with Ted. You, Neil dont for a second get cheated on your appreciation of what Nature has to offer. You can find it everywhere. If you look. And you do. take a bow or a breath that you have that connection.
Not to oneup you Neil, but through no smarts of my own I was able to witness the Northern Lights while in the NWT. It really does make one feel something indescribably good. It’s also pretty cool to see people playing a pick up game of baseball at midnight.
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Hi CB. I think you like Nature even more than I do. And Teddy liked Nature more than both of us. Take care. See ya!
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There have been a few Northern Lights displays around here of late but we never find out about them until the next day. Being winter, the curtains are generally closed – I must get friends to alert me when they see them in the sky.
We went to the North of England Flower Show last year and I was similarly impressed by the spectacle. Beautiful displays and stunning blooms.
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Hi Alyson. Yup, flower shows can be terrific. I’m already looking forward to the 2026 flower show in Philadelphia. Enjoy the weekend!
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This is a treat to read 🌻! I would have visited PFS when I was in Philly for my MA, but you didn’t write this earlier, haha. 🤪
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Which school in Philly did you go to?
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Temple 😎
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I went to a jazz concert on the Temple campus last week. A tremendous amount of new construction has taken place there over the last 15 years.
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Hope you had a nice Jazz night! They used to have that for free every Wednesday night. And yes, the campus was always under some constructions while I was there.😉
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Ah Neil, I feel Spring Fever tugging at your soul! Glad you enjoyed the Philly Flower Show, And yes! Inclusion is GREAT. I also share your aversion to early morning hours and so have seen very few sun rises, but I can gaze at the night heavens and their stars for hours. Also, related to your love of the wondrous crashing of the ocean’s waves. Having grown up along Lake Michigan, I remember how wonderful it was camping out on the beach, the roll of the waves breaking on the short lulled me to a peaceful sleep. The most amazing ocean waves, though, for me were the ones Ed and I had right outside our digs in Portugal. Our house was high up on a cliff from the beach, but when the winds got going, those waves broke on the massive rocky cliff and you could hear the roar and see the spray. Wondrous! I finished a novel in a room on the top floor and loved writing to the sounds of those breakers. Keep enjoying everything (including your early morning sleep)!
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The USA’s Great Lakes are like oceans. Incredibly big. You know, I think I’ve seen only one of the five. Maybe two. How many have you seen?
The ocean near your place in Portugal inspired you, I’m guessing. It put you in a zone where writing came easily.
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I’ve seen all five Great Lakes. Grew up along Lake Michigan, as I said, but also enjoyed Lake Superior in camping trips up in the UP; Lake Ontario in my several visits to Toronto; Lake Erie visiting friends in Cleveland, and the same for Lake Huron on visits to friends in the eastern side of the state. I remember being quite shocked to realize at age 18 that not everyone grew up with a lake edging their town!
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May you never lose that powerful need to be “thrilled and awed,” Neil–and the determination to fill that need. Great pics. And maybe if more of us just note that inclusion is great in our writing and conversations, we’ll etch that essential observation into the atmosphere, where it can trounce the awful vibes that confront us every day.
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The more inclusion the better. Especially in these times when MAGA creeps are so prominent.
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I’m not sure I seek out more spectacles now that I’m a senior citizen or if I just tend to appreciate them more. I can’t imagine myself overdosing on too many ocean walks or sunsets. Currently, staying on the west coast with the Pacific audible out our window, I know I’ll feel I didn’t get enough before we leave.
I’ve never truly seen the Northern Lights. My cellphone captured them a few years ago when I was camping in Canada in the fall. We set alarms for midnight and walked to a nearby lakeshore to get a good view of the horizon. I could see an abundance of stars but not the Northern Lights until they appeared on the pictures we shot.
I’m also a big fan of fireworks and that flower show looks awesome. So much beauty in the world! We need to take better care of it. Thanks for the reminders.
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Hi. You know, I’ve read about your sort of Northern Lights experience before. That is, a person doesn’t see them very well, if at all, but their camera does!
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Every hemisphere has an amazing attribute. I find the northern lights to be astounding as well as mysterious. Wishing your every desired and wholesome spectacular journey, Neil. 🧊🥶
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You’re absolutely right. Those lights are astounding and mysterious. They are like something from another dimension.
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Hi Neil, I believe the Northern Lights aka: Aurora Borealis are from another dimension, the Heavenly realm, because if it’s association with many prophecies.🤔
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I’m with you on noticing and celebrating all the spectacles, but natural ones number among my favorites. Have you ever been to New Hampshire’s Franconia Notch State Park? The Flume Gorge is quite literally one of the most beautiful and awe-inspiring natural spectacles I have ever seen.
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Hi Michele. I’m pretty sure I hadn’t heard of the Flume Gorge before. You’ve put an idea in my head — I’ve spent very little time in New Hampshire and in Maine. Both of those states are gorgeous. Exploring them would be a very good thing for my wife and I to do. We shall see . . .
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Beautiful photo 💯💜
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I appreciate it. Thanks.
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Nice post to read. Thanks for sharing 💯
Grettings regards 🌎🇪🇦
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Thanks. Take care.
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