Day 127 Bloom

April 15, 2015

(This is part of a 365 project during my 70th year where I write and illustrate a blog on each day's gift.)

Saucer magnolia tulip tree bloom. (Magnolia liliiflora)

How can something so ordinary go unnoticed and then suddenly bloom into splendor? Down the street from my house is a tree, one among many in our neighborhood—nothing outstanding, until today when it shouts full of white and magenta blooms. Tight magenta buds burst into full, delicate white petals tinged with deep pink. Soon the ground beneath this tulip tree will become blessed by these pastel petals. Perhaps I missed its beauty before its blooming. If I can admire its buds and blooms, either attached or fallen, maybe I missed something to admire before its peak. 

I have to wonder how many people I’ve met in brief encounters whom I have passed without so much as a second look. Maybe some were withholding their unfolding until the right time in their lives. It is my loss then because I will have missed their blooming. How many "average" students slipped by in my classroom without my noticing that they were just waiting for the right season to reveal themselves? 

As I age and my petals droop, lose their color and fall, I hope that others will appreciate the me that is past my peak. I hope they will look for the subtle and what it offers past the bloom and into my winter. 

My gift today is an unfolding.

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> Day 128 Taraxacum Officinale


You can find links to my other posts on this project here:
http://bjschupp.blogspot.com/2014/12/365-gifts.html