Living Fractals
The peonies are blooming. A short walk around the neighborhood is rewarded by a viewing of the color and variety of these blooms. A peony reminds me of fractals, when I examine one closely, an organic repeating series… Perhaps you are fascinated with fractals as am I. A fractal is Nature’s reminder that chaos is not disordered. Order and chaos are wondrously in relationship.
A fractal is a never-ending pattern. Fractals are infinitely complex patterns that are self-similar across different scales. They are created by repeating a simple process over and over in an ongoing feedback loop. Driven by recursion, fractals are images of dynamic systems – the pictures of Chaos.
If we pay attention, — perhaps we will capture a picture of chaos…









The peony, is a flowering plant in the genus Paeonia, native to Asia, Europe and Western North America. Flowers close at night or when the sky is overcast. The large bisexual flowers are mostly single at the end of the stem.
Over 262 compounds have been obtained so far from the plants of Paeoniaceae. These include monoterpenoid glucosides, flavonoids, tannins, stilbenoids, triterpenoids, steroids, paeonols, and phenols. In vitro biological activities include antioxidant, antitumor, antipathogenic, immunomodulative, cardiovascular-system-protective activities and central-nervous-system activities.