flowers

Fairy Dust, Diamonds, and Damask Roses

Azure waves swept ashore in a wall of magic bubbles playing leap tag with energetic surfers. In the blink of an eye, bubbles dissolved into foam as if transformed into fairy dust leaving the beach to sparkle like a cluster of diamonds. With the grace of a dancer, footprints in the sand were completely erased before swishing back out to sea. Just beyond the crashing waves at the lava mound, appeared a trail of delicate pink blossoms scattered in the sand. Each flower emitted a super-fragrance and looked as though it had been gingerly plucked from a heavenly lush rose bush. Hardly touched in unblemished beauty, their perfect state conjured images of sea nymphs frolicking on the beach serenading humpback whales into choosing a mate. How romantic! I later learned this breathtakingly beautiful ancient flower is called the Maui Pink Lokelani. It is native to Asia, but was brought to Hawaii in the 1800s by the Spanish. Now grown on Maui, the damask rose is popular for stringing leis as the Heavenly Rose of the Hawaiian Islands. 

Pay a Visit to Sunny San Diego, California 

Pay a Visit to Sunny San Diego, California! Just off the coast of Southern California sits a city that is high in adventure and easy in the eyes. Whether you’re captivated by the flurry of activity along the marina with the fishermen returning from their catch-of-the-day or the military jets soaring high overhead, it’s exciting to absorb the sights and sounds in every direction. The bordering exotic Bird-of-Paradise flower showcases its colorful foliage as though it had feathery plumes. From cloud-bursting sunrise to breathtaking sunset, all one can do is marvel at the beauty of this city known as San Diego. 

Palm Island Boardwalk Lives Up to its Name

A leisurely stroll on a winding boardwalk is perfect for daily exercise. One forgets about the 8-acre distance covered along the shoreline and through dense areas of native plants and trees simply because there is so much that catches the eye. Shaded pavilions offer the perfect stopping point to relax for a moment, soak up the view, or share a picnic. The solitude is therapeutic as well as the company of egrets, ducks, bullfrogs, and dragonflies. Well done, Mt. Dora!

The Open Arms of Love

“Just imagine becoming the wayyou used to be

as a very young child,

before you understood

the meaning of any word,

before opinions took over your mind. 

The real you is loving,

joyful, and free. 

The real you is just like a flower,

just like the wind,

just like the ocean,

just like the sun.”
~ Miguel Angel Ruiz

Pretty in Pink Impatiens

“She cast her fragrance and her radiance over me.

I ought never to have run away from her…

I ought to have guessed all the affection 

that lay behind her poor little stratagems. 

Flowers are so inconsistent!

But I was too young to know how to love her…”

~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry,

The Little Prince

The Delicate Daisy

“I think scent is sensual. I guess evoking a mood or a spirit is key, and I think with the women’s fragrances we have evoked different types, moods, or sensibilities of a woman – whether it’s Daisy with the sweetness and the innocence or Lola which is more provocative, sexy, and sultry.”

~ Marc Jacobs

The Allure of Poppies

“And now, my beauties, something with poison in it, I think. With poison in it, but attractive to the eye, and soothing to the smell. Poppies…Poppies. Poppies will put them to sleep. Sleeeep. Now they’ll sleeeep!”

– Wicked Witch of the West, Wizard of Oz.