Paperwhites...

I didn't expect it. I drove around the bend on the lane that leads to Bayou Bend, and there they were. That part of the gardens is shaded, but the ground is primarily forest floor - in other words, not populated by shrubs. In the spring, all of the "bulb" flowers start sending up their straight green shoots, and soon after - Voila! We have clusters of paperwhites, or daffodils, or whatever surprise ensues.

This year, they surprised me. I think they may be early. The camellias are different in that there are so many varieties that they start blooming in December, and fade in and out until the azaleas take over. But somehow, I didn't expect the paperwhites to be out at the beginning of January.

Who knows? Climate is such a strange thing, and ever-changing. As we are, correct? Four years ago, I had no idea what a paperwhite was, much less when it would bloom, or where. I had no idea of when camellias would bloom.

Watching the cycle of life in the gardens is a good thing. It's never exactly the same, but there are patterns and a certain flow to it all. Then, if you throw in a hurricane, or flood, or drought, or an enormous tent that stays up way too long and kills the grass beneath it - well, that's just the recipe for excitement that may be welcomed, but usually is not.

Our lives are the same. I know it appears that some people seem to never have "bumps" in the roads of their lives - that they are continually blessed with not having tragedies or setbacks or obstacles thrown in front of them. It also appears that some have way more than their "share". I can't really be sure of where reality is - probably as Forrest Gump said that it's "somewhere in between." Maybe part destiny, maybe part floating along on the wind.

All I know for sure is that the paperwhites are out in the gardens, and that is a sign of life and continued growth and the hope that comes with both.