Writer on the Wall

If you have access to a jacaranda tree, I’d love to come take photos of it. The ones I see, I see from afar – along Herndon by Saint Agnes, from Freeway 180 between 168 and 41 and along random freeways in Los Angeles (I don’t know that part of the world very well).

Jacarandas in bloom look like some exotic tree from another planet, or a Seussical world, with their vivid purple blossoms.

Each year, I seem to gain a heightened awareness of a new flower or plant. In other years, it has been hollyhock, photinia, Chinese pistachio, golden chain. And in 2008 – jacaranda. We were on our way to Disneyland in May for our youngest daughter’s 5th birthday. That’s when I first became aware of these brilliant flowering trees.

Noticing patterns in the world around us adds depth to our everyday experiences. Seeing those patterns repeat year after year weaves a fabric of memory, a tapestry of our life.