THE OBSERVATION BOOTH
OP / ED & PHOTO CREDITS ANDREA DIALECT
WEEDS AND CHERRY BLOSSOMS
Cherry blossom season had been in peak, full bloom from April 3 to 12. The Japanese flowering cherry blossom trees in Essex County’s Branch Brook Park, 5,300 trees in 18 different varieties.
My plans. Scenic strolls. Drive-throughs and Drive-bys. The annual bike race was, my original kickoff for all that picture taking, shooting spree already mapped out in my head.
Sadly, I would miss the bike race. And although I had already booked sessions with a couple of my favorite muse to enhance all that pretty, I came to realize during one of my daily drive-bys that we had missed the mark. The few Cherry blossoms that were in full bloom were, sprinkled in like that cherry on top, amongst all of those rows and rows of leafy top-heavy greenery, which surely we would be fighting for those slots, as capturing pic with others in my camera’s view having the same bright idea.
Logically meetups were canceled. But as quick as it had spilled off my lips, a display of beauty presented itself when walking home that day. They were everywhere, even adorning the front of commercial spaces, as so overtaking towns, bypassing city ordinance, who knew? Flowering at peak bloom was a thing.
I snapped proof, both for the shocking beauty of it all and the welcomed addition to my archives. Although, sadly, I also realized today that peak time for all that stubborn beauty shall too soon end, while snatching palms full after capture.
Still today in hand, I have options; whether it chooses to be the lovely arrays of yellow sprinkled all about like polka dots or the paleness of white hovering above resembling the fabric of a wedding dress. I get to choose, when seemingly sending them on their quest to fulfillment of my hopeful desires. I wish they do not die, which is likely the opposite choosing of homeowners, landscapers, DPW and the like. People Kick rocks I say, am I asking too much. Because you’re pretty lawns are even prettier now, in my opinion.
But for now, I am grateful to all those many weeds that evidently have shunned the chemical rain showers in all forms. Unapologetically those lovely marigold bobble heads make their mark. In the green grass, weeds live amongst us. Look and perhaps you too will find such beauty putting oomph in that curb appeal. Now I am reminded that those full blooms that danced on my pupils also will soon be gone.
Perhaps my last blown whispered request. I blew all of that white around
Note… What dances across your pupils today will not ask permission before it disappears tomorrow.
And yet, here is what stayed with me the most. Cherry blossoms quickly fade, as so does its aroma, most flowers do but weeds.
Not perfect. But present. And maybe that is the lesson, the real capture.
While we chase peak bloom, we overlook what refuses to be erased. Beauty does not always arrive on schedule. Sometimes it leaves or it grows away. Whispering silent requests into the wind as if the blooms could hear me, as if they might linger just a little longer on my, I mean our behalf.Top of Form
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Visit Localtalkweekly.com to read drafts in its entirety and check out the archives getting even more amazing content from the Entertainment section. While you’re at it, check out my Fine Artistry photography archives in support of my subjects that, while supporting change, become my muse and clay as supporting my experimental projects as I mold them into Fine Artistry.
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DID YOU KNOW…
Dandelion seeds are technically known as cypsela (a type of fruit/seed) or achene. The white, wispy parachute-like structure attached to the seed is called a pappus. These structures are often collectively referred to as a dandelion clock, puffball, or blowball when in their mature, white sphere form.
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- Pappus (Parachute): The fluffy, hair-like top that allows the seed to fly on the wind.
- Achene/Cypsela (Seed): The small brown seed at the base of the pappus.
- Beak: The long, thin stalk connecting the seed to the parachute.
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The entire white, fuzzy head is designed for wind dispersal (anemochory), with seeds able to travel over a kilometer in optimal conditions
