I couldn’t get over the irony of seeing my narcissus all sprawled about in my living room over the past couple of weeks. Talk about the need for some “smallness of scale.”
Interestingly enough, as long as my narcissus stayed small, it was beautiful. The blooms were tight, yet delicate. The fragrance left something to be desired, but it could not be ignored (what a well-named plant!).
Didn’t take long for the narcissus to move beyond its healthy boundaries toward a path of self-destruction, though. It’s not pretty anymore. The blooms are drying up. It doesn’t even reach for the sun anymore when I rotate it. My narcissus got too big for its britches, and now it’s paying the price.
Interestingly, I was at a friend’s house where she had a whole pail full of lovely narcissae. They were still going strong, but not because of any limitations of their own. They were trying to go wild, but she had reined them in with some stakes and twine. Imposing a smallness of scale on the flowers has given them a longer life.
Is it too late for my narcissus?
I did a google search on “forcing narcissus” and there were quite a few to choose from. I have never tried it but it doesn’t seem hard. This is from someone who thought the directions on re-growing (is that a word??) an amaryllis seemed easy enough but still haven’t been able to pull it off! I haven’t been able to replant dahlias either! So good luck!!
Oh, I like this. I think we try to grow beyond our boundaries sometimes in an effort to be “forward” or “beautiful,” but instead we weaken our core (and flop over like your flowers!)
Thanks, Charity, for that analogy! I’m kind of reminded of Psalm 131. Pruning and growth, key here. But also not trying to be what we’re not. Being faithful to our gift and calling. And accepting that. Seems apt here, as well, I think.
Praise the Omnipresent One that His classroom is everywhere!
Pruning is such a strange concept. I wish I could have seen people’s reaction when they first figured it out.
km — He’s everywhere we look for him.
aimee — I wonder if God uses other people in our lives as stakes and twine? The spiritual parallels continue!
craver — Narcissi would probably be better, but I wanted to capture the feminine side of my proud flower.
for now . . . — great point. Thanks for the reminder. By the way, do you know how I can keep my narcissus going until next year? Heavy pruning? Anyone?
It may be too late for your narcissus this year, but you could have it bloom next year. Then you could do the stakes and twine and give it a “second chance”. It’s never too late to turn away from being “too big for your britches” and starting over.
Narcissae. Now that’s a word we don’t see often enough!
what a great spiritual parallel!
Isn’t it amazing how God uses everything He created to show us our need for Him.