Zinnias
The tomato vines are fading, the last of the fruit will soon be picked. The squirrels have taken a share 
over the past several weeks. Who knew they could be vegetarians? Life is nothing but adaptable. There was a time when we humans would pass on a tomato. But we learned. Now the tomato reigns as sustenance for us: pizza 
sauce, Bar B Que sauce, the bacon lettuce & tomato sandwich, salad garnish, and so on without end.
I sow a row of zinnia seeds at the end of the garden to demarcate the yard from ground cultivated for the vegetables. The zinnia belongs to the tribe of sunflowers within the daisy family. They are a hardy 
plant native to the arid southwest, through Mexico to South America. The Chicago Botanical Society says that the zinnia is the hardest working flower in the summer garden. They are an old 
fashioned flower, easy to grow. I plant them because they remind me of my mom. She was certainly a tough woman, but one who was easy to be around. Severe conditions, arid climate, adversity can serve as resource for a beautiful life. At least, that is how I remember 
mom. She loved her flowers which she planted in beds yearly. She watched over them, 
watering and weeding day to day. The emergence of the blossoms was a point of satisfaction to her. So I greet the zinnia blossoms as symbol of my mothers enduring presence in the things that I love.
Like this bee, mom took pleasure in her work. She elevated what was necessary, to meaning and beauty.
