A Nihilist Who Cares

I’ve never felt tied to place. There are places in the world I prefer to live and visit, but I’ve never associated any specific place with home. With that said, of the places I’ve been and not felt culture shock, it’s the plants that stand out and give me pause.

Growing up in the boreal region, then living in the foothills and coast of western Canada, I feel comfortable surrounded by deep green conifers and groves of golden-green leaved and white barked aspen and being dwarfed by cedars and Douglas fir and surrounded by ferns.

But now I’m spending time in warmer climes, and it’s all tall palms and broad-crowned palms, and pointy succulents, and flowers. And such flowers.

When I was in Australia I found my favourite flower. It’s called the bird of paradise (genus Strelitzia). The flower that can turn the head of birders. And at the time it was bitter-sweet, because I thought I only had the time I was in Australia to really appreciate it until I came back for another trip. I could have researched this. I would have found out that it is native to South Africa.

If it has been introduced to Australia, it could be introduced in other areas with similar climates. It so happens that I’m in California now, and will be for the next several months. And guess what I found? The flower that can turn the head of birders.