If the day and night are such that you greet them with joy, and life emits a fragrance like flowers and sweet-scented herbs, is more elastic, more starry, more immortal, ... That is your success.~~ Henry David Thoreau
Flowers are my weakness. Living on a limited budget I have learned to pass by that beautiful pair of shoes and perfect outfit, learned to love to eat simple home cooked meals more than restaurant ones, learned to enjoy cuddling in front of a rented DVD instead of watching movies at the theater, but I haven't mastered the ability to pass by on flowers. My thousands of spring bulbs planted over 15 years is what I nostalgically miss about our now gone house. It will take time to get our current and larger yard to the point of floral beauty I imagine. Flowers are a tangible symbol of joy harboring visual, textural, and aromatic links as well as representative philosophical ones. Spring bulbs are especially symbolic to me. There are times when I feel so unappreciated in my roles of mother, wife, and educator. Times when I feel that I am failing in these roles. Times when I think I made poor decisions about life choices. Then I think of my favorite flower the daffodil. Planted in the fall there is no immediate gratification for the work done. Long cold dark months pass. Months long enough to forget all the places the bulbs were buried. And though a constant and predictable cycle from dormancy to full bloom, they surprise with their arrival of green emerging from the frozen ground, to stretch and reach and arrive with their full brilliance. Once properly planted they can take a lot of neglect and with just a little tendering of water and nutrient they increase their blooms with each passing year resulting in years of anticipated joy. Flowers are a simple joy. My life decisions bring me many simple joys. I am grateful for the abundance of love and happiness that blooms in my life and in this I am successful.
