I had been envying the lovely photos of sunflowers, fields of sunflowers, arrays of sunflowers, and displays of sunflowers posted by my blogging friends. I had tried to vicariously delight in their sunflowers, all the time missing the sturdy row of my own I had planted and expected to enjoy. I thought malevolently of that happy fat woodchuck who had had the audacity to cut the flowers off mid-stem before they had bloomed. I resigned myself to continue to feed the goldfinches who flock to my yard remembering previous September’s sunflower seed feasts.
And then! What did I see this morning when I left the house for an appointment? This solitary sunflower, small but blooming, defying all the odds. Waving insistently at me, it seemed to say “you give up so easily. Did you really think the woodchuck could prevent every single plant from growing?” Well yes, I did. But I was wrong- a sentence I seem to say as rarely as possible. That one little sunflower seed waited until the coast was clear, ignored all instruction that its time to grow had passed, and pushed its way into stem and flower.
I think of John Milton’s verse, “they also serve who only stand and wait.” Here it seemed to be wait and stand, but it prevailed in the end.
Saved By Words 
Whether in their hundreds, or just alone, nothing beats the simple sunny majesty of a sunflower.
They are the one plant that seems almost ‘human’.
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLike
They routinely make me smile for sure.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hooray! I am glad you have a sunflower of your own to enjoy. And what a lovely quote to accompany it. : – )
LikeLike
Thanks.
LikeLike
Yay! It’s a beauty!! 😊🌻
LikeLike
I always love those blooms facing the sun, sadly though I don’t have them in my garden.
LikeLike
Maybe it is too hot where you live.
LikeLike
When it is summer, it is really. We have the cooler days and nights now because of the rainy season.
LikeLike
You get to have many plants that would never survive here. I love that we can see each other’s plants because of WordPress.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Tropical plants abound here Elizabeth 🙂
LikeLike
I recall the fields of sunflowers in Portugal and Spain. What a wonderful sight.
LikeLike
That would be wonderful to see.
LikeLike
Hurrah! Bravo little sunflower! I needed a good news story today 😊
LikeLike
Glad to share. That Salt Path book looks great. I plan to listen to the author read it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Some months ago we had planted some pumpkin seeds. The creeper had climbed all over the cocum tree. Today we saw a big pumpkin. We were delighted.
LikeLike
That is a wonderful surprise. I hope you took a picture of it to show your grandkids.
LikeLiked by 1 person