Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul. Luther Burbank
Whenever I find myself thinking about a problem, I can’t help but sometimes get deeper and deeper into a bottomless abyss of despair and anxiety. It’s like an addiction of never ending what ifs and whys.
I remember the many times I would knock myself out with worry. Before long my fertile imagination would paint a guesome picture of the worse kind of accident. Then time passes and I marvel at how quickly these worries go “puff”.
Of course, there have been close calls and it would have been unnatural if I did not worry. But it’s dwelling on them far too long that causes havoc to tranquility. And so before I realize that dwelling on a situation is not going to help, I have already died a thousand imaginary deaths.
It’s a good thing that every now and then I get a wake-up call that puts everything into perspective. Sometimes it takes the form of a song, a passage in a novel, and, sometimes it’s a shared story.
Just yesterday, a friend pulled me aside to share his wake-up call. Let’s call him R.
R is an early riser. At 4AM, he is up and busy sweeping the dry leaves that had fallen in his yard. As he sweeps the leaves into a pile, his mind is preoccupied with a financial problem. What should he do? Who can he ask for help? How will he continue to support family members who depend on him? These questions go round and round in his head as he moved on to water his plants. He is very passionate about his plants but lately, his focus had been on his problem. He was about to enter his house, when his attention was caught by a Trumpet shrub that was in full bloom. The morning sun was shining on it just like a spotlight on a stage actress.
He had been so anxious over his problem that he was losing all hope. He had buried himself in his own misery and had lost sight of the beauty that was around him. With new resolve, he got ready to attend the early morning mass. Then and there R accepted that he had done all he could and was leaving the rest to God. A God who never fails to send us reminders of hope in the form of flowers-- if we care to to take notice.
xoxoxoxoxox
I remember being served deep fried stuffed squash flowers in one of those provincial heritage tours. As I recall, the flowers were stuffed with a mixture of ground pork and shrimps; dunked in a batter; and deep fried. Unfortunately, I don’t have the recipe. But I will not dwell on my limitations. Instead, I share with you some eye-catching beauties from my garden.
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| Periwinkle (suppose to cure cancer) |
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| Lantana: a butterfly's delight |
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| My Summer Blooming Lilies |
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| Hibiscus aka Gumamela= a herbal tea |
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