The Ones I Like List of 2011 – A Countdown [#10]
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| “in the rose garden” |
©2011 Katya Horner
in the rose garden. I do like a good rose. I do. But I’m not inspired by one. I prefer the gentle spirit of a daisy, the simple optimism of the forget-me-not, the independent streak of a wildflower and the humble posture of the lily-of-the-valley. Like most things I gravitate toward, I prefer my flowers to hold their gravitas in check – less Tom Cruise, more Jimmy Fallon. Less brandy on the rocks, more grasshopper.
So why on earth would I pick in the rose garden as a year-end favorite? I’ve been asking myself that for days. I’ve tried to move it off the list. I really have. Lord knows, it would have saved me days of writer’s block. But I couldn’t do it. These are supposed to be the “ones I like.” They’re not the easiest. They’re not the most popular. They are the ones that burrowed into my heart for whatever reason. The ones I would never “leave behind.” But I still don’t get it. I’m of simple things, of surprises and curiosities. Why a rose?
Just brainstorming, but maybe it has to do with certainty. Maybe it has to do with the certainty of the rose. Maybe my internal flower child is seeking that which it hasn’t embraced in ages – stability. There are few things as stalwart as a rose – maybe not in its physical durability, but in that which is more important – in idea, in symbolism, in art. Maybe I’m in search of that. Maybe Tom Cruise intensity equals passion and passion equals dependability. Maybe Tom Cruise seriousness equals “all in” and “all in” equals endurance. Maybe there is something to this whole gravitas thing, whether Tom Cruise, brandy on the rocks or a singular rose.
Or…
Maybe I’m just a grasshopper-loving, Jimmy Fallon-watching, wildflower-seeking photographer who happened to take nice shot of a rose.
I have no idea. Both seem plausible.
