It's not easy being gray... or brown...

I'm going to be held responsible for coming up with a Major Project during my time at The School of the Spirit -- SN11.  And I've thought about coming up with one or two or a whole bunch of essays accompanied by photographs.  My photographs, of course...

And one of the first essays I've thought about would be about getting older.  And using flowers as a counterpoint and example of what I was feeling:

Flowers in full bloom are, of course, perfectly lovely; but the blossoms alone are only a tool to attract pollinators.  Germinators.  Mainly insects, of course.  The Real Action takes place as the blossoms wither and fall away -- exposing the seeds that had been forming behind or inside the blossom.  And the seeds are the assurance that the plant or its progeny will survive for another winter and produce yet another group of blossoms to continue the species for another year.  

But of equal importance, the seeds are the nourishment of the birds and mammals that depend on them.  Animals that would perish without the seeds.  And the birds do their part by carrying seeds some distance from the plant that created them and allowing those seeds to drop to the ground and spread the plant species.  To create new flowers and yet more seeds to provide more nourishment and spread the plant species even farther.  

Blossoms are nice.  Seeds are vital.  

And the metaphor, then, is that people "blossom" into adulthood, but are growing and developing in ways that were not necessarily obvious.  As blossoms do.  But when the joys and beauty of youth fall away from us, we're exposed as the essential nature of who and what we are.  And we can nourish those around us and spread our wisdom -- our seeds of understanding -- to those who listen.  We can write what we know and our wisdom can extend well beyond our time on this planet.  

I've been taking a considerable number of photographs of flowers as they fall apart -- exposing the seeds inside.  And I've been impressed with the variety of appearances of the seeds...  

And so, here's a start on that essay!