ser·en·dip·i·tous
ˌserənˈdipədəs/
adjective
- occurring or discovered by chance in a happy or beneficial way.
"a serendipitous encounter"
synonyms: chance, accidental, coincidental;
Viola tricolor, Also known as Johnny Jump up (though this name is also applied to similar species such as the yellow pansy), heartsease, heart's ease, heart's delight, tickle-my-fancy, Jack-jump-up-and-kiss-me, come-and-cuddle-me, three faces in a hood, or love-in-idleness, is a common European wild flower.
But to me they have always been Johnny Jump Ups.
A year or so ago I had several plants "jumping up" all over my lawns so rather than mow them over I transplanted a few into one of the raised beds by the head of the driveway. They flourished there but also apparently self seeded themselves into the section of "lawn" I was trying to build at the edge of the drive.
This spring has been a difficult one in many ways - the weather has been incredibly chancy for gardening, the political climate is enough to sour a person on the concept of anyone ever being willing to work together and my body has decided to test my resolve vis a vis the benefits of growing older!
Then the other day I took a good look at the section of "lawn" at the head of the driveway and, voila! a bed of Johnny Jump Ups! Dozens of plants amidst the weeds and crab grass (I do poorly at establishing a lawn) and straw mulch.
There they are - between the pavement and the garlic they made themselves right at home.
I love the way they stand up straight no matter how much the wind blows or
how much it rains. If you look closely you can see they are covered with the latest chance of showers!
Even when they are blurred, the colors are still beautiful.
So take a minute (or an hour) and look around you - never know what you might find - in a serendipitous sort of way!
No comments:
Post a Comment