Floral Friday :: All Saints Flowers - The Yellow Poui

These flowers are everywhere at this time of the year, upon every hill in the distance, they seem to have taken over the island. They are the yellow poui flower. We seem to call them all saints flowers as they bloom around all saints time. Here where I live we do not have Halloween but we do have what I think is our equivalent: all saints day and all souls day.

November 2nd - On all souls day a large number of the population goes out to the graves of their loved ones and place a lit candle on their grave in remembrance. Folklore says that on this day you are likely to see spirits roaming the earth, that sometimes they come back to visit in hopes of finding their loved ones among the masses out placing flowers on their graves and if you are unlucky one will lure you to your death and the after life from whence they came.

It is said that they are granted this one night to visit the land of the living and their loved ones, so people will light a candle on their door step or on their windowsill so that they can find their way back to the house and visit.

It is said that if your candle goes out, your loved one will not be able to find their way back to eternal rest and so will stay with you, at your house and haunt you all your year. As a result, neighbourhood children have been known to run around and blow out peoples candles so they will be haunted by spirits  (your candle must burn all night) It is also said if I remember correctly, that if you are holding a candle on your way home from the cemetery you must keep it lit or unwanted spirits will follow your light and walk with you home where they will stay with you and haunt you.

November 1st - On all saints day people place lit candles in remembrance of the saint. Admittedly I do not know much else as I am not catholic so have not taken much interest in this day.

These is also a beautiful short story of how the poui came to be in existence. A tale of native Indian girl born of fair complexion and golden hair. (sounds familiar if you're born with albinism) Her people feared her and locked her away in a high tower. At the end of the story she dies but she is turned into millions and billions of little yellow poui flowers and scattered about the entire island so that she will never and can never be forgotten.

 I didn't do any editing of most of these shots because I really liked the way the light was coming though them. No pun intended.

Sorry for the slightly spooky post but I do so love a bit of folklore and the folklore of the islands is ever so fascinating to me haha.

Peace. Love. Culture.
This post is a part of the Floral Fridays series and link up.

On Blooming Where You Are Planted

(Your are likely having fall and winter where you are. At home we have 'rainy season' now. The ground is saturated with water and the plants are happier than ever before. So as i envy your changing leaves and hats and gloves and boots, I'm still grateful for my rain and flowers. haha does that sound bad? I do not mean it to!)

It's hard sometimes, to bloom where you have planted. How long have I struggled with that one!  It's taken me a long time to appreciate the ground under my feet and I mean that literally as well as metaphorically.

It's taken me some time to come to understand that it is up to every individual to learn to love the world they live in, to bright up the corner you inhabit. The fact is, you've got to do what you've got to do to force your eyes to look in the direction of beauty lest all of the ugliness overwhelm you. How much time do you think we have wasted just wishing for better days and bigger cities instead of appreciating the tiny beauties where were are and acknowledging the bitter sweet truth that our present will not be our future? That the roses will die and the garden will look different and embrace a different kind of beauty...a beauty will inhabit because change happens anyway....

Today you can find me over at I Will Bloom for my guest post discussing 3 ways how to fall in love with your world. This is the first post in a series she has started where bloggers all over the world are encouraged to share their process in falling in love with their world. Thanks to Helen for having me and be sure to tell me what you think! I do indeed want to know!

Oh and hey what do you think of those roses though!? Amazing right?! No  way I could wait till floral Fridays to share that with you!

Peace. Love. Brighten Up Your Corner.

Floral Friday :: Garden Flowers

I think I must really have a soft spot for the hibiscus flower...

Upon visiting a school recently for work I happened across these beauties glistening in the sun light. Aren't they impressive! That school in particular had multiple beautiful flowers in their front yard. I thought what a wonderful addition to the work environment. It is a pleasure to be inspired by beauty alongside the inspiration of learning. What a beautiful twosome the two make. It had me thinking: what else goes best with beauty?


What do you think goes best with beauty?

Peace. Love, Learning

This post is a part of the floral Fridays link up.

Floral Friday :: Flower Quote

(Giant hibiscus)

I honestly can not think of a flower quote beside my favourite flower one, which is what you see branded on this photo. It's actually an excerpt from a S.Korean poem i once heard while watching a Korea drama.

It really makes me think and gives me a sense of fortitude at times of insecurity. It reminds me that the simple things that seem effortless in their success go through countless acts of stress and pressure, only we never hear about it, we only see the resulting beauty of hard work.

I know better than many that just because a person is not complaining does not mean that they are not hurting, not struggling, not hanging on with an unsure grip. Some fights are silent, that doesn't make them less aggressive.

Are there any poems that you find solace in the times when you are unsure?  I'd really love to read them.

You can check out the entire short poem here.
Peace. Love. Fight.

This post is a part of the Floral Fridays link up

Foral Friday :: Flower Arrangement

Well apparently i can arrange flowers? I think. They look pretty nice to me. I have to admit this was a huge challenge for me. I am an avid believe that flowers should remain attached to their original home so ripping these poor things out hurt me a lot. I did want to know if this was something i could actually do though and here we are.

White bougainvillea, violet/ burgundy rose and a mauve/light hibiscus. It didn't take much and I just popped them into a whine glass once I was through because for such a small arrangement I thought it was appropriate and pretty.

This post is a part of the Floral Friday blog link up.

Musing Flower Power :: White Bougainvillea

So I did get a shot of the White Bougainvillea and my goodness looking at it doesn't it just inspire a feel of innocence and purity? I really find myself having a new appreciation for them in taking these photos. I'm used to seeing them; I’ve seen them all about ever since I was young.

I remember when i was of the age of one digits, going to school in the city, it was always bustling and i was short. Yet even in the craze of the city sounds there were these outside teris style pots near the sidewalks, attached to the buildings still made of French design from when they ruled this land.

Most days as i headed to the bus parking area to go home I’d run my hands through them, a child, all the sounds of the city would fade away and all that was left was the tender silky feel of these beautiful leaves under my young fingertips as a ran and skipped by. (Yep, i used to skip through the down like i owned the place.) I'll really have to continue getting more pictures of the different colours of them and share with you.

Those were rarely white; they were usually brighter colours, likely to catch the eyes of the tourists. They got my eyes too. I love it when you relearn how to love something that never went away in the first place.

Has that ever happened to you, remembering how to appreciate something?

Peace. Love. Youth.

Floral Fridays - Bougainvillea

I'm taking part of Floral Friday (yes i know this is up late but i had a hard week of activities. Forgive me?) This is my nation's national flower. It comes in so many colours: orange, yellow, white, purple, pink, red. I will try o get some shots of the many different colours for you to see next week, if you're interested? We've been known to call them 'hard times' flowers because they seem...well they seem to just whether the weather surivive and not just survive but thrive. By the way? They are that bright, i've done nothing to the photos except blur the first slightly.

I got these shots as i had a end of school term session with my staff. It's offically summer for my students and my fellow teachers! As for me? I'm still doing summer classes....

Cry me a river.

Peace. Love. Survive and Thrive!

Show me the flower that blooms without shaking.

I've been having a hard time lately. This is my favorite Korean poem. I wish i could remember where i found the translation but i dont. This makes me happy. I heard it first in one of the South Korean high school dramas i wached. I can't remember which one.

I find that it discribes well how i feel in times of ill ease. I feel like this is the moment when the wind is shaking me during growth. And eveven when the wind slows and even stops...i know that it will come again...Anyway....

Where is the flower that blooms without shaking?
Any of the beautiful flowers of this world
all bloom while being shaken.
They shake on stems that grow upright.
Where is the love that goes without shaking?
Where is the flower that blooms without being soaked?
Any of the shining flowers of this world
bloom as they are soaked.
Soaked by wind and rain, petals bloom warmly,
Where is the life that goes without being soaked?
Author - Do Jong-hwan

Happy Friday.