Spring

Spring is bursting with energy. After the long winter months there is nothing more exciting than seeing the first flowers and blossom spread across the trees.

Jericho Communal Garden

We get the term ‘spring’ from the Old English word ‘springan’ meaning to ‘burst forth’. This is an apt way to describe the flowers of spring that break through the winter layers. A walk around Oxford is a chance to see some of these delights of spring. One of the best sights is found in the Water Meadow at Magdalen College. The wild meadow along the banks of the Cherwell is a sea of purple chequered flowers; snake's head fritillaries.

St Frideswide peeking through the foliage. St Frideswide’s Shrine, Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford.

Spring is also the word for a water source, again linked to the Old English term, describing the water bursting forth. The story of Oxford is linked to a healing Spring in Binsey. Patron saint of both Oxford and the University is Frideswide, an Anglo-Saxon noble woman. She chose to dedicate her life to God as a nun. Legend is that Frideswide was pursued by King Algar, she fled from his unwanted advances by boat, taking shelter near Binsey. It is said that here she healed the sick and injured drawing ‘healing water’ from the spring.