It’s a cloudy rainy Memorial Day here, but there’s nothing like a bit of serendipitous magic to make me smile.
I have a huge paper poppy. It’s probably about 4 feet tall with a blossom spread of at least 12 inches. I have it propped up in a corner of my dining room, in an area filled with bits of red, including a poppy painting. I honestly don’t remember when or why I made the poppy, but it was certainly many years ago. I think I was experimenting with stretching crepe paper and the ruffled effect just said poppy to me, and so I set about creating a jumbo version of a favorite flower.
Given that the Flander’s Field poppy poem by John McCrae is often mentioned on Memorial Day (as well as Veterans Day) – I thought I’d take a photo of my paper poppy.
I so love how it turned out! It looks a bit like an abstract oil painting – one I wish I could actually paint. I can claim no responsibility for the wonderful way the poppy’s personality showed up and was captured – all ethereal and magical and in motion.
I’ve written a couple posts about poppies before – see here and here. Interestingly enough in that latter post a photo I was trying to take of some other paper origami poppies came out unexpectedly as well. I think poppy has a message for me, and I’ll have to listen a bit more.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh wrote a poem, while not about poppies, seems to sum up this beauty for me:
A flower for my heart
That finds no song;
Purer than rhyme,
Fragrance may climb,
Petal on petal,
Up the perfumed stair
To you, aware
Of music more profound,
More innocent than art;
A flower for my heart.
Do you have a flower for your heart? Is there a blossom that insists on showing up in a unique way for you? Is there a fragrance that stirs deep memories for you? Do tell, you know I love hear. I’m linking to Lori Moon’s May Flower Challenge, and I invite you to visit there as well.
The flower that most stirs my heart is one I can only now see in photos. One of our hedges around my childhood home in Miami was the Japanese Lantern hibiscus. It is so sweet as it seems to grow upside down. The blooms are small and only last for one day. Funny…but I don’t remember any fragrance. I will need to research this little gem!
Take a look: http://www.flowerpictures.net/flower_database/ij_flowers/japanese_lantern.html
I will miss your May flowers and I will miss our blog challenge!
Oh my Ruth – what a beauty! I’ve never seen or heard of it before, so thank you for sharing.
I’m going to miss the challenges as well, but we’ll have to carry the inspiration into our own continued explorations, no?
I love poppies!
They are planted along the side and in the median of the interstate highways in North Carolina. Makes it so beautiful to drive through the state.
Oh that’s wonderful! Sometimes you see such extraordinary roadside plantings and I give a little nod of thanks to whoever was wise enough to choose the gifted floral architect. 😉
Deborah–Truly, you created a beautiful work of art, and the poppy photo resonates as a spectacular painting! Louie and I will give another try to planting poppies this week!
Well thank you Irene, although really I’m just feeling delighted that I happened to be there camera-in-hand, when the poppy decided to show her inner dancer. How wonderful you’ll be planting poppies – may they flourish spectacularly!
I’ve taken a few photos this year of a hibiscus at my in-laws place. It was exceptionally beautiful to me and I loved taking photos at different angles.
I love when a particular plant captures our attention and insists on posing for multiple shots. 🙂
Love the photo Deborah…very surreal! Yes, the sunflower is the flower that shows up for me. When I see a sunflower it makes me smile and I just feel happy. But even more than that, a sunflower holds its face to the sun, drinking in its rays. I liken that to sitting in meditation and turning within, spirit drinking in the Light and Love of Source. Thanks Deborah! <3
What a lovely connection you have with Sunflower Belinda!
What a cool photo! Sometimes the best ones come by accident, it really looks like a painting!
A little serendipitous shake. 😉