The determination to survive.

Two or three years ago we had a friend who came into our lives for a short time and then as quickly disappeared again. The way people sometimes do. He had had a hard time for a few years and was picking himself up bit by bit but sometimes the pressure just got too much and he moved on again. He knew I loved peonies and he left me a little pot with a cutting of a peony tree bush. It didn't come to anything but we couldn't bring ourselves to throw it away so it got shunted from place to place and forgotten about. When part of our fence blew down in the recent storm we cleared some rubbish and there it was. It is going to flower this year and the stalk is healthy. Hopefully so is our friend.