Gift of Golden Showers

What a glorious sight the Cassia fistula tree is in full bloom! It is beyond words. In the days of summer they seem to make up for the extreme heat by conniving with the wind to rain down its yellow petals on whoever happens to pass under its shade. Your gaze upwards will take a moment.

As you turn your gaze toward the ground you will notice that it has been laden with a carpet of gold. What luxury to tread upon. Magical. Simply magical.

I am grateful to live in the suburbs where i get to see these beauties.

Peace

"Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth with the grasses waving above one's head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday, and no tomorrow. To forget time, to forgive life, to be at peace.
- Oscar Wilde

Whenever i go through an especially difficult time, when life presses down on me so hard, i remember loved ones who are now "resting in peace." Blessed are they who no longer fear, pine, nor can be disappointed and hurt. Theirs is the peace and serenity we wish we had consistently in our lives. No longer bothered, agitated, and stressed.

For our dear departed, all we can do is cherish the memories we shared, lives knit together by design and circumstance.

As we continue to strive in the days left to us, may we all have pockets of sunshine and the deep joy of knowing everything will be alright.

Do not stand at my grave and weep, 

I am not there - I do not sleep. 
I am the thousand winds that blow, 

I am the diamond glints in snow, 

I am the sunlight on ripened grain, 

I am the gentle autumn rain. 

As you awake with morning's hush 

I am the swift-up-flinging rush 

Of quiet birds in circling flight. 

Do not stand at my grave and cry, 

I am not there - I did not die.

~ Mary Elizabeth Frye

Nature Heals

"never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful"

 -- Emerson

It is always a blessing to come upon beauty in the outdoors. Last weekend i found myself in a tropical rainforest in Calauan, Laguna. While scouting the area i noticed a peculiar plant. Its little white flowers are like sparklers that shoot up from a mound of black berries which are set in the middle of a bed of radiating leaves, like a flower within a flower. I don't know what these flowers are called but I was smitten. I felt my spirits lifted up.

It is a magical thing to have eyes that see and feel the comfort of nature. They seem to appease one's wretchedness. Their quiet but assuring presence is a balm to the soul.

Vietnam Rose

Portulaca grandiflora

Sun lover. While i was trying so hard to shield myself from the sun's searing rays (it has been incredibly hot these days), these beauties seemed to rejoice being sun-kissed. Not a petal or leaf was wilting. As they flower non-stop, they provide a sight for sore eyes.

I am reminded to appreciate life as it is. Instead of complaining endlessly about the heat, i need to just be grateful for the blessings of summer.

Another name for the plant is Moss Rose. The Vietnamese call this plant "hoa mười giờ" or "ten o'clock flower." The blossoms show up at a specific time of day, in full bloom at ten. How reliable. You can count on them to cheer you up in the sweltering heat. However when the skies are overcast they close shop. Sun lover.

Day's Eye

"Day's eye" is Old  English for the daisy flower --- also a  birth flower of  April along with the sweet  pea. I can  see  the reason  for  the name. The daisy  is  a  flower with petals like  rays arranged  around a  bright yellow  disk -- its eye -- poised to receive the sun's rays. Incidentally,  the buds only open  at dawn as  if to herald a new day. A bunch speak of new beginnings.

Speaking of new beginnings, there comes a point when we find (like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz) that we are "not in Kansas anymore." That feeling of being in new territory, something alien to us, out of our comfort zones, hurled into the unknown. It is always an opportunity to make good once again...make good this time.

Sweet Pea

The sweet pea is a climbing plant with delicate pastel-colored sweet smelling flowers. April's birth flower. 

The poet Keats who sensuously described the beauty in nature had these verses about the sweet pea:

"Sweet Peas, on tiptoe for a flight,With wings of gentle flush, o'er delicate white."

Cultivated since the 17th century, the sweet pea has become one of the most sought after perfume and cologne ingredients. The floral note evokes romanticism and blissful pleasure such as associated with summer.

These beauties are long lasting that they make for a perfect bouquet, easily lasting a week indoors with a daily water change.