Monday, April 15, 2013

Dear Verbena


I saw you there on the side of the road - just before the field of Bluebonnets. You looked a little dejected.  I just wanted you to know I understand.

Truthfully I was one of those people. The ones who start taking their cameras with them everywhere they go as soon as late February rolls around, in hopes of getting magnificent pictures of Bluebonnets. Then you caught my eye, and I felt sorry. So I took your picture too.

You really are quite beautiful, with your tiny cluster of deep purple flowers. Set against the backdrop of new green grass, you are magnificent.

I know what you're thinking - that it is all well and good but what is the use if no one even notices. Compared to those Bluebonnets you just don't measure up.

Bluebonnets are the state flower of Texas! There are pictures of them everywhere you look - calendars, coffee mugs, tee shirts, towels, the list goes on and on. Have you ever seen a Verbena on a coffee mug?

And what about all those people who ride country roads in search meadows covered with Bluebonnets? They come to a screeching halt when they spot one, causing the people riding behind them to slam on their brakes. Then they haul all the kids out of the car and plop them down in the middle of the Bluebonnets for a photo shoot. Every household has one - a picture of the family surrounded by those beautiful blue and white blooms. (I confess we have one or two.) No one has ever done a photo shoot in a patch of Verbena.

It doesn't seem quite fair. I sympathize. But I want you to know you are just as important as those other flowers. Long after they have gone to seed, you  remain faithful - right through the long hot summer. You bloom without any effort on anyone's part - no watering, fertilizing, mulching or pulling weeds - dotting the landscape with bright patches of color. You give a quiet joy without ever knowing it.

You may not get to stand in the spotlight. You may not have adoring fans singing your praises. You may not even have your picture taken or your image reproduced on dozens of products.  But you are a precious gift all the same. It would be a rather dull place without your bright purple face. Who else could make all those white and yellow wild flowers look so good?

So please don't be sad Verbena. You are uniquely you. I, for one, think you're pretty special.

Joining my sweet friend Laura today:



Blessings,
Linda