Not that anyone needed another message of how fucked-up 2020 has become, but the Thanksgiving/Christmas/Easter cactus is throwing out flowers in June. Even if you added Memorial Day or the 4thof July to its name, it still wouldn’t be right. I suppose that’s what labels get us: absolutely nothing. This cactus is triggered by a specific number of daylight hours, so I’m not sure what ungodly occurrence went awry to throw it so far off its blooming cycle. The room it is in is our weight room/workout room, which clearly hasn’t been used in months – ok, years – so there is no tampering with the natural light it receives. (Honestly, I just wiped an inch of dust off the bench press because it was mainly being used for storage, but I’m getting back on the old bench because I need to eat in the manner to which I have become accustomed without packing on the quarantine 19.)
As for the odd flowering time of this cactus (which usually happens around Halloween, truth be told) it is indicative of a year gone completely crazy. Maybe it just wanted to join in June’s bountiful blossoms. Maybe it saw the peonies about to burst forth outside its window and wanted to perform its own little preamble. Maybe it just felt like showing off.
When life’s mysteries are beautiful, there is less of a need to question them.
We need more beauty right now.
