For those of you who still have patches of snow lingering in shady spots, hang on to hope. Lurking around the corner are whatever flowers that herald a farewell to winter in your locale. Even if it is just a few green leaves on bare branches, they still say warmth is on the way. Across the Gulf Coast small bushes of red Christmas Cheer azaleas tickled your “maybe” bone and led the way in to banks of President Clay’s rosy glory. Washington D. C. and northern Virginia already have had rows of varied colors of tulips that were planted in the fall with great expectation. Another month or two will pass before Colorado has columbines brighting the foothills of its mountains. In Texas, family carloads are taking to the highways to park along fields of bluebonnets for a yearly picture of children in a glorious setting.
I never knew bluebonnets until I came to Texas in 1960 and had to be ignorantly in charge of the Texas Independence Day program for children and parents. I had to sort out the legend of the Cherokee girl who received them as a gift from the Great Spirit after providing a means of ending a drought while working in that bluebonnets became the state flower in 1902 through the efforts of Colonial Dames of America, a very impressive title. I helped plant a native garden at another school that involved scoring the seed with sandpaper and soaking them before planting. Germination was not any greater with this care than the amazing patch in my current back yard from seeds blown over the fence from the stand grown by my neighbor. The Texas Department of Highways scatters 30,000 lbs of seeds a year and what happens is beyond belief.
So now is the viewing time. A friend and I left on a perfect morning last Friday to head toward the Hill Country. As we got out of town, teasers began to appear. We sighted a few dark blue shadows and a scattering of red Indian Paint Brush and the accent of Snow on the Mountain. Finally, the first large field. We pulled off onto the shoulder, avoiding the ditch, to document the moment. On to Chappell Hill, one official Festival town, for lunch and then a circle to Bellville. There the town has a designated field opposite a mall to make the trip a success. By the time you read this on Thursday the past few days have probably moved this year’s blossoms from almost to full glory. While viewing, sing “Have you ever been to Texas in the spring? Where bluebonnets wave in the air.” “Tis the season!
Consider how the wild flowers grow. They neither toil or spin. Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
Luke 12:27
Let Me Tell Ya 