A Little Attached

This is a bit of a cheat. It’s a photo I took of a flower I loved except that this year, it never showed up.

This spring as the snow melted and the green returned to the field in which Lauralea and I live, I watched the bushes and flowering plants around the house come back to life. This is the part I enjoy- watching the buds come with the warmth, then seeing the buds turn into something quite beautiful, and stunning even. Gorgeous blooms full of amazing colour. 

This year we noticed that a few of those plants seemed slow in returning. I especially kept my eye on the lilac blush. Ten years ago it was given to us by a friend, and as we have cared for it, it has grown into quite a lovely, full-sized bush, and its blooms are a beautiful shade of purple and white. We planted it near a window so that when it was in bloom we could have the window open, and the lovely scent from the lilacs could fill the house. 

This year, however, it didn't bounce back. There was only one branch on it that seemed alive, and although there were some buds on it, it was more embarrassing and broken than either of us wanted to admit. We found out that our shrubs and bushes had been the victim of winter kill. That's what happens when it gets cold out, but there's not enough snow to cover and insulate the roots of the plant.

I walk past that lilac twice each day as I go to my study at the church. What was once a bush full of promise, and abundant with blooms and glorious fragrance, has now become a sad reminder of a flower I used to love.

It’s funny how attached I became to this plant. I’ve never experienced that before.