FLORA vs. FAWN
They were prairie people, from a place where summers were
brief and winters frigid. Every summer, he manicured the lawn
while she encouraged a multitude of annuals, and for six short
weeks their yard exploded with color. Their retirement dream was to
move to a warmer climate where he could make a career of
watching the grass grow and she could smell the roses year round.
The spring they visited Vancouver Island, they were enthralled
by the lush kaleidoscope of verdant greens and vibrant blooms. They
drove along roads outlined with yellow broom and flowering shrubs;
camped among ferns under tall firs, lacy cedars and exotic arbutus
trees; saw deer calmly grazing along the ditches and felt at peace.
And when they learned about the Island's Christmas-blooming roses,
they were hooked.
... continued in "One Woman's Voice".
* published in West Coast Reflections, 1997
Image: "Rose Bouquet" Nadia Shworan '98
