Day 212: Many of the plants in my yard were chosen because of childhood associations like lilac, peonies, columbine and lily-of-the-valley. Most of them have a connection with my grandmother, although it was my grandfather who grew them. He passed away when I was quite young, so it was my grandmother who maintained the yard thereafter. I believe my love of Bridal Wreath Spiraea was born there, but I cannot remember where the bush was placed, only that when it was in bloom, it brought to my young mind the thought of a cloud descended to earth. When it shed its petals, it became no more than background noise, its small leaves and wiry branches nondescript, unremarkable. The flowering period is relatively short: one burst of glory and then decline, but in my grandmother's yard, that brief time was enough for this shrub to establish a lifetime niche in my gardening soul.
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