The Violet Vase

In the spring, the backyard became busy. Lots of leaves had to thrust their way to the sun and grass had to grow and stretch. Worms had extensive burrowing to do and the bees could barely find enough hours in the day for all their work.  It was my job to observe the progress and carry reports and samples back to my mom. Leaf samples, worm samples, and lots and lots of soil samples. It was important to test the backyard daily for ripeness, greenness and general fecundity.

One of the most important tasks was violet watching. Through extensive experience, I knew all the best places to spot them and the heart-shaped leaves to watch for. Nevertheless, it always seemed to go from one or two isolated blossoms to more than I could possibly count. Once the backyard had reached violet saturation, the harvest could begin.

I would start by choosing four leaves with excellent size and shape and pick them first. Then I would carefully choose the violets by depth of color and length of stem. The violets had to be plucked carefully from close to the ground to keep the stems at maximum length. As my hands filled, it would become more and more tricky to do, requiring me to stick the tip of my tongue out between my teeth. Eventually, I would end up with an overflowing, double handful to take to my mom.

When I came in with my full violet harvest, my mom would always compliment me on my work. But the biggest compliment was the Violet Vase. It was the perfect size and shape to display my work. It was so exciting to watch my mom carefully remove it from the breakfront, fill it with water, and carefully arrange the violets. My mom would always commend me for remembering the leaves to give the final arrangement the perfect touch.

The Violet Vase was never used to hold any other flowers that I can remember. It was, and still is, the most amazing soft shade of blue with just a hint of green. Its shape suggests a flower of four petals just beginning to open. It is beautiful and looks more like a part of nature than a made thing.

This year, for my birthday, my sister-in-law provided me with an amazing gift; my own Violet Vase. She had found its twin and recognized it as the miracle it was. It now sits on my dresser, patiently awaiting its first violet harvest. As soon as it is full of long-stemmed violets and four carefully chosen leaves, I will take its picture and send it to my mom.