A Single Seed

This morning I went out a pulled three black seeds off a Four O'Clock Plant. This is a special plant. In the fall of 2005 these seeds were given to me from a neighbor of our family in China. We planted them the following spring. For 5 years we have been enjoying the blooms of these multicolored plants.

After the summer blooms are gone the Four O'Clocks bloom into November here on Long Island. As I held those three seeds in my hand I thought of how from year to year the seeds keep giving from that original gift. I thought of the wide variety of color they bring. Each bloom is white and splashed randomly with a deep violet. No two blooms are the same.

The Four O'Clocks give off a perfume fragrance. The sight and smell remind me of China. Some souvenirs have special value, others are beyond price. That is the way I felt today when I pulled the seeds off, brought them inside and stored them for the next April when I will put them in the ground and enjoy the show all over again!