Are You a Lilac or a Wildflower
Last night, when I went to bed, I read that we could expect frost overnight. When I saw the temperature on my outdoor thermometer was at 29-degrees this morning, I knew I had to walk down the road to a lilac shrub not far off the road. Yesterday I saw that the lilac had a number of blooms typically seen in the spring/summer months. My plan for this morning was to photograph frost on the tender lilac blossoms. My fifteen minute walk to the lilacs took me past our prairie where I saw many wildflowers covered in frost. I was anxious to compose “frost on lilac blossom” pictures. Oh the images in my mind that I was about to make!
Plans quickly changed when I arrived at the blossoms and there was no frost - none - on any blossoms! Should I still photograph the lilac blossoms without frost or hike back home to photograph frost on wildflowers? Since the sun was just rising over the horizon and providing “smooth” light, I had to photograph the blossoms. Following are a couple of views of the pretty lilac blossoms blooming in November.
Late Lilac Blooming in November - Image 1169621
Late Lilac Blooming in November - Image 1169727
After photographing the lilac I then hiked back to the frosty wildflowers. Actually, the foxtail is a non-native grass, but you understand. Following are a couple of those photos.
Frost on Foxtail - Image 1169902
Frost on Goldenrod - Image 1169939
Deep Thoughts Time…
After photographing vibrant blossoms and dried wild plants, I got to thinking about human personalities and the plants I photographed. As I was walking to the lilacs I would have described them as tender, maybe fragile, and not able to withstand the challenges of cold weather. My arrival at the blossoms changed my perception of lilacs. Not only were the lilacs undergoing a second, late season bloom, but the blossoms hosted no frost and looked very nice. (Time will tell what impact the frost actually had for the next few days of bloomings or for the younger buds.) Then I thought about the wildflowers that bloom and are done - no second blooms, no bright colors. They bloom and are done with no resilience.
So how are we as humans? Are we resilient or so set in our ways that challenges are difficult. Might we be able to look good during challenges or just give up? Believe it or not, I hope I am like a lilac - able to withstand challenges and hopefully looking OK, at least most of the time. (Remember - we are all human!)
