String of Pearls
Every one of these slender ixora buds caught its own drop of rain, lined up like pearls on a string. And every one of those drops is a tiny lens, holding the garden flipped upside down inside it. Count them and you're counting little worlds.
Ixora is a cousin of coffee and gardenia, and its name traces back to a Sanskrit word for God. In India, its red flowers are still offered in Hindu worship. Once these buds open into tight clusters of small, four-petaled flowers, butterflies and hummingbirds come for the nectar.
This moment of noticing was one of those relaxing days where the rain keeps you inside, and then it breaks, and the world begins to come alive again. It’s my favorite kind of day. The guilt-free relaxation inside that leads to a noticing session outside. Worlds reflected in raindrops will never cease to amaze me.
What we protect begins with what we notice. My noticing leads to The Wild Land Project.
About This Image
Common name: Ixora (most likely jungle geranium, also called flame of the woods)
Scientific name: Ixora coccinea
Location: Northern Belize
Collection: After the Rain
