A BOUQUET OF PEONIES
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My first peony: Growing up in the early 1950s in a sleepy hamlet one hour north of New York City, I loved watching a long bed of peonies near our farmhouse burst into full magenta bloom every June. It signaled the end of school — the beginning of summer!
But I paid scant attention to how quickly those lush petals fell to the ground. I was off riding my bike to the community swimming pond or playing Kick the Can with my older siblings.
Today, Lily Pulitzer-pink peonies bloom in my sunny back garden here in the Wells woods. They are gorgeous! But I know how fleeting they are so I clock nearly every petal as it falls to the dirt below. Don’t go away so quickly, stay longer, I say to myself. They don’t listen!
Simon Lycett, the renowned British TV personality and celebrated florist, stated succinctly: “A peony is like magic: a single flower changing colour, shifting from green to pink to cream. But a peony is never ‘just’ a flower — it’s an entire bouquet all on its own. You see them in the moment, then they go, and that’s what makes them so special.”
Maybe because it’s rained every day here in Maine since May 1 — or at least, it seems that way — but every plant in my front and back garden is taking its sweet old time to flower — except the peonies. For some reason (and I’ll give the rain credit for something), this year they are spectacularly regal and profuse.
I have magenta peonies in a vase on my coffee table and pale pink peonies in a cut glass pitcher on the dining room table The other day, a dear friend dropped off a vase filled with spectacular white peonies boasting crimson accents, and I placed that gorgeousness on my kitchen island. I treasure the hours they’re all taking to reach perfection because I know their time is short.
A philosopher once wrote, “Life is like a peony. It takes time to bloom, but when it does, it’s the most beautiful thing in the world.”
A poet answered, “The peony flower symbolizes the passage of time, reminds us to cherish every moment, and make the most of the time we have.”
Carpe diem! And remember to stop and smell the peonies while they are still in full flower.
