One day

By mid-May, the spiderwort is already past its prime.  Each rich purple flower lasts only until the evening, and the following day is replaced by another within the same cluster.  After a month, the clutch burns out to a nutty brown crisp on a tall green stem.

These gold ones in containers near the street are called "Sweet Kate."

By late May, the daylilies are at their peak.  Like the spiderwort, each orange flower lasts only a day.  Breeders have created thousands of varieties in luscious combinations of reds and yellows, but the common orange variety was among the first species in my garden, purchased as a groundcover for a patch of bare sandy soil in the backyard. 

Years later I transplanted them to a sunnier spot near the street.  The orange flowers glow in the hot sunlight of late spring, exceeding all expectations for beauty.  A photo cannot do justice to the rich gold tones that radiate from each blossom at midday.

I went to a library conference last week.   I was among the first members of the organization in the mid-80's and in the early years, I was intimidated by my older distinguished colleagues.  As the years passed, I participated more fully and came to respect and enjoy my contemporaries.  Last week, I looked around the tiered classroom and realized that I am now among the elders.

A common daylily blooming for a day in the late afternoon sun.