The Gift

Camille was 8 when she offered me a peony in a carefully wrapped package for Mother's Day. She was so proud of having chosen the most special flower at the nursery for me and I was delighted to receive it. The pale pink blossom offered the promise of growing up to become the most beautiful of all flowers in our garden and as I glanced back at Camille, I saw that she held that same promise. What a Mother's Day it was.

When we moved from our home years later, I made sure the movers took the large blue pot holding the peony with them.  It flourished in the pot for awhile but when we moved again, I knew it was time to plant it in the ground.  The garden was reworked and the peony was transplanted-- the only problem was that I didn't see where it had been placed.  Every springtime for 3 years, I searched for it to find its blossom but to no avail.  Ironically, Camille left home at the same time to go to college --- so now, they were both missing. 

Last week, I was walking in the garden with a glass of wine in hand appreciating all the flowers that were beginning to bloom--and there it was.  Not just one blossom, but two!  It had been hidden behind so many layers of tall plants that I would never have seen it had it not called out with its two fabulous pink flowers!  In three years, the plant has grown tall, strong and healthy and in those same years, Camille has grown strong and independent-- and they have both come through on their promise of beauty.