Look but no touchy

Life - there is no getting around it - until there is no life and that would be dead. It is so much easier to dwell on life than death. Our life is surrounded by smelling the roses -or in my case smelling the gardenias. And then there is the life that is surrounded by a blanket - wool blanket - of smothering proportions. Sometimes that is me when I can't breathe but then I whip out my inhaler and life goes on.

Back to the gardenias - one of my favorite flowers. Gardenias are fantastically and magically over abundantly fragrant. You can smell them miles away. Not exactly miles away but far enough. I have one on my desk at work. It's been there for four days and the aroma is still strong.

It arrived on my desk quite by accident. A student did a 'no-no' - bent the rules - more like breaking the rules right down the middle - and picked the luscious beauty right off the tree in the playground. Since I was enjoying (not really) my much dreaded recess duty very near the said gardenia bush - sucking in the sweet smell - the dirty deed transpired. If one has to do recess duty it is much-more-better doing it standing by the gardenia bush. In the spring it's the azalea bushes but they have no aroma. Or it could be that's when my allergies and asthma are in full swing and I can't smell a thing.

So said student picked the gorgeous white aromatic bloom - with this huge smile plastered on her little face - I understand the pull but she knows the rules.I'm sure she was mesmerized by the beauty and aroma of the gardenia. Kind of like when chocolate is placed before you and you have no will power and it is scarfed down in seconds. Will power or lack thereof is a scary thing.
Most flowers are wanna-be a gardenia's just like this flower in the butterfly garden at DeLeon Springs state park. It isn't even close to being gardenia status but it sure is pretty.

I confronted her about breaking the rules and she had no comment. That 'I couldn't help myself' was etched in stone on her face. Not wanting to toss the fragrant bud in the trash can it went straight to my desk. So her bad became my good. Hopefully we will have more rule breakers today as my most wonderfully fragrant flowering is drying up.

Words of wisdom - advice for the naturalists - words to live by or just plain nonsense. Stop and smell the flowers just don't pick them unless you want to make the recess duty very happy.