On this road less travelled, I decided to stop and take a picture of every different flower I saw. I have been thinking of Maple Creek and the people I worked with. I think of them most every day, but right now it is Valentine’s Day and I used to work in a flower shop so they have been on my mind more than usual. So this page is dedicated to those very hard working ladies back home who spend many long hours making the most beautiful arrangements for the sweethearts of the town. I was always amazed at the variety of arrangements that went out from the very simple to the elaborate.
The girls (ladies really, but girls at heart) laughed and talked, maybe even got a bit frustrated, but I am truly missing the comraderie today as I sit here putting this post together. The phone ringing constantly, the orders piling up, the delivery lady organizing the many orders for the day, the people coming in. I loved the laughter, confusion, and the color and smell of the flowers. Hats off to you guys for all you do to bring a smile to those who receive your lovely arrangements. I hope the weather cooperated, your feet aren’t too sore and you have many chocolates to get you through the long days. These pictures were taken with you in mind, even the cow and rooster because after all you live in cattle country!! I hope you enjoy the beauty of this quiet country road as I do.
Just a burst of color to open. 
This is an orchid bush which doubles as a fence. First we have a close up of the two different trees growing together……. and then you see the wall of trees that have the most beautiful purple orchid on them.
Those pictures do not do the live fence justice, really it is amazing!! 
Here is a cluster of the flowers and then to follow a single orchid for your enjoyment…..
(I picked 3 of them to take with me)
Now you have to admit this is a very dapper rooster. I thought he was stunning. And look how nicely he posed for me, I think he knew how much you would appreciate his greatness. I wish I could have captured the sheen on his feathers which seemed to glitter in the sunlight. He was very beautiful.
Now this beauty was on a tree so high, I had to get stretch and reach way high to get this fuzzy picture. I was a little unsteady on my tip toes. 
And then you see what I’m talking about as you see Patrick walking beside the very trees with these red beauties. Not sure about you, but my hibiscus never got this tall…..
These daisies grow in bushes like this everywhere, I just love them. They create a fence for many properties as well. 
And you all know this beauty. It seems to grow in just this color here, but it is amazing to see close up. The vibrancy of the color is beautiful, I could just stare at it for a long time lost in it’s richness. 
Not sure what this grass is called, but I just thought it was beautiful. It grows very tall as you can see in the next photo. I just think I’d like to draw it, it’s perfect for me to draw using my pens. 
Now this looks like a poinsettia to me, but a much larger version then we’d ever see back home. While I was taking this picture, a man who was walking by stoped to explain to us that while this plant was beautiful, it was also poisonous. Well this is a rough translation because of course I don’t speak Spanish well enough yet.
But he took his machete and cut a branch that was on the ground, took one of the inner flowers off and snapped a leaf off to show us the white milk that flowed in rather a large amount, saying it was very bad. He kept pointing at his eyes, so I wondered if it caused blindness, but I’m not sure. So look but don’t touch was the very clear message! And just a side note, most everyone you meet carries a machete here, something I had to get used to.
And look. I even found you an Alberta rose – can you believe it. I thought that was pretty cool. Patrick had to take the picture because I could not stretch high enough to get the close-up. 
I thought this guy had very special markings, the colours were interesting with the brown on the top of his head and ears. I thought it was pretty unusual – I think he thought I was pretty unusual also, as he just stared back at me.
Here you grow corn on every small plot of land you can. This crop was on a very narrow piece of land, maybe only 6 rows wide, right on the river. I couldn’t believe it, but corn is a staple food for the people here and land is not easy to come by. Often the crops are grown on the side of the mountain on seriously steep slopes. I’m still in awe of that!! 
Here we have the daisy tree again, but this one also had the morning glory climbing up it. I wasn’t tall enough even on my tip toes to get a better picture which tells you how tall the tree was, cause this image is taken about half way up the tree.
They grow their flowers big here…..
I can’t remember what these bushes are called, but they are everywhere also. This one was particularly beautiful.
Ahh the trumpet flowers. Can you believe how many blossoms are on this tree? The fragrance as I walked by was almost overpowering. I was at least 20 feet away from it, but I almost couldn’t take the smell.
This white one was right beside it, so that is quite an amazing combination. Truly beautiful. 
This guy was all by himself on the opposite side of the road. Just one blossom – and I was able to get underneath it to give you a different view. I was told that the fragrance from this flower is used for the same purpose the date rape drug is. I was advised not to put my nose in the flower to take a good whif as I would be under the spell of the drug. Not that I would the smell from a distance is more than enough!!! But still good to know.
And here we have the familiar lily, always a beautiful addition to any arrangement….. 
Not sure what this little guy is called. This picture does not do it justice, it is a perfect little fuzz ball and I do love it. It kind of reminds me of clover only fuzzy, about the same size though.
You know one night when we were sitting in the park at night time watching the fireflies, I couldn’t help but wonder if I could capture one with my camera. But they move quickly and with just my phone camera, it was not likely. Just now I was walking to the table to get some lemonade and I saw something sparkle on the floor. I thought it was sequence, but where did that come from? But no, as I looked closer (almost didn’t) I saw it was a firefly!! Wow what are the odds of that happening?
I am sad to say this happy experience for me comes with a heavy price. I tried to set it free and realized it was injured and could not stay upright. But he gave me this amazing gift, a light so small, but still so bright. Incredible…..
Happy Velentine’s Day to everyone – If there is no one in your life to send you flowers, go buy yourself a nice bouquet, you deserve it. This year I am surrounded by flowers and so very happy to be able to enjoy this treasure right now. I’m in the biggest flower shop ever!!!!
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