An explosion of colors

A few years ago my wife and I went to a Fourth of July – Independence Day fireworks show and were dazzled by the bright colors that lit up the nighttime sky. There were reds, oranges, yellows, and everything else under the sun. Those fireworks had a greater variety of colors, but they have nothing on the pyrotechnics put on by the three azalea bushes in our yard.

I can take no credit for the their brightness. The azaleas were planted well before we moved into our house. Over the years, I’ve often joked about pulling the azaleas out because they don’t look all that great much of the year. In all honesty, for most of the year, they look “blah” to me.

We’ve always kept them because they need little work and I have a bad history of killing plants. Case in point, my story last week on how I recently killed an indoor Money Tree Plant. Despite everything, the azaleas survive. And when they show up, boy, do they show up! It’s like a fireworks show that’s late getting started. But when it goes off, it leaves the crowd awed and amazed.

From Blah to All That Glitters

Each May, the azaleas bloom. You can set your clock to it. This year, the smallest one came first. You turn around one day you notice small red pedals hidden amongst the green. Unfortunately, the red pedals were gone by the next day, but they still came. The middle bush is the best and brightest of the lot. It blooms a deep pinkish-magenta bud. Finally, the last one blooms with white pedals.

I love the blooms, but unfortunately they don’t last very long. I went outside yesterday to look at them and I didn’t see as many blooms as the day before. They never last all that long, usually a week or so.

In some ways, they have a lot in common with fireworks works displays. The azaleas burst onto the scene, make their big splash, finish up with their crescendo, and . . . then boom they’re gone.

I’m left oohing and aahing in their wake.