Sunday, August 1, 2010

The Sweetest Perfume












Have you ever seen a flower down
Sometimes angels skip around
And in their blissful state of glee
Bump into a daisy or sweet pea.


Do you have sweet peas where your live? Around here, they grow wild on the sides of highways. In the 17th century, a Sicilian monk sent it's seeds to England. And the flower we know today was hybridized by Scottish nurseryman Harry Eckford. In recent years, New Zealand has been a source of new varieties. There are many different colors, but they are best known for their scent, which is sensous and captivating. It used to be highly prized by perfumers, but now the synthetic form is mostly used. There were perfumers back in bible times. Once a woman came up to Jesus and poured a jar of very expensive perfume on him. His disciples didn't like this, and said that the perfume would have been better used if it was sold and the money given to the poor. Here was his reply.


"She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throught the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her." Matthew 26:10,13





18 comments:

Reanaclaire said...

i have yet to smell one, Ginny.. God'
s creation is really awesome..

DawnTreader said...

They don't grow wild here but in my childhood we used to grow them in the garden. At first glance at your pictures I misstook it for another flower which made me say "oh not AGAIN?" because I was taking pictures of those yesterday... But it was not the same, just kind of similar in colour and shape... LOL

From the Kitchen said...

I remember those well growing in my grandmother's garden. I liked pulling the little pods off and pretending to make them into a vegetable for my dolls. They were also very pretty in a mason jar bouquet.

Best,
Bonnie

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

I love the sweet pea flowers.

Re: Graffiti, I can imagine the gangs targeting the House of the Lord. They really have no sense.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

You asked if I have pets, I don't have any in my married life. My husband says cats cause allergies as our family is very prone to allergies of all sort.

But I grew up with animals. Our animals were however working animals. Our dogs watched the house, we didn't let them come inside the house. Our house had stilts, During the day, we played under the house.

Our cats were bred to catch mice and rats. Traditionally we fed our cats only once at lunch. In the evening, we didn't feed them, the idea was the cat would be hungry, and they would catch mice. Indeed, our Sarawak, Borneo cats were rated the best mousers in the world. So good, that in the 80s, when the Saudi Arabian cats had lost their intact ability to catch mice, they imported a lot of Sarawak, Borneo cats to catch their mice and rats.

MadSnapper said...

the last two photos look like the been is leaning in to hug the sweetp pea. great shots all of them. i have never seen sweet peas growing, only heard of them in books. i wonder if they don't grow in the deep south because of heat. i thought they were exotic flowers to be bought in florist shops. learned something yet again. bloggin is making me smarter by the day.

George said...

These are wonderful pictures of a beautiful and fragrant plant. Thanks for the history.

Arti said...

Great pics... I can almost smell them...
The story of Jesus is very beautiful!
The wall hanging was very interesing too!
As far as your query on the red entrance on my blog, its just a decorative silk cloth!

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Hi Ginny, My mother used to have Sweet Peas--but I've never seen them much since growing up... I remember their wonderful smell though....

I also remember that story about Jesus and the woman who poured perfume on him... Loved Jesus' response!

Have a wonderful day.
Hugs,
Betsy

srp said...

I had a packet and meant to plant them but ran out of time and space this year. Anything to attract the bees is good.

BTW... I don't know if you have ever heard of BSF... Bible Study Fellowship... it is an international study program and this coming fall we start on Isaiah. I am so excited. You can Google it and see if there is a group in your area. Something tells me you would really enjoy this.

S. Etole said...

My mother used to grow them ... they are so pretty.

Remington said...

I have never smelled a Sweet Pea. That would be awesome!

Kilauea Poetry said...

I guess that's why the song..remember the lines "Oh Sweet Pea, come on and dance with me" was written? (smile)
So true..these even resemble orchids here. Beautiful photographs and verse Ginny! Love bee and the first little poem too. I didn't realize it had such a fragrant smell? Thanks for the useful piece of history- interesting.

Stephanie V said...

Unforgettable fragrance. I can't imagine a summer without sweet peas in the garden.
We have some by the front door and also some by the back fence. They aren't wild, though and are red, purple and pink. We do have a wild pea that has much smaller pink flowers than yours.

Dawning Inspiration said...

I've got sweet peas growing on my patio - they are all hot pink - smell so sweet.

SquirrelQueen said...

I remember Sweet Peas mostly from living in Georgia, seems every summer they were in everyone's yard. I did grow some a few years ago, the scent was heavenly.

SquirrelQueen said...

Oops, I got so caught up in remembering the scent of the sweet peas that I forgot to tell you how much I like your photos of the bee. It looks like you are getting closer Ginny, that is a cool looking bumble bee.

Together We Save said...

Beautiful flowers....but I don't like the bees.

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