I wish you were here to smell the sweet, pungent, scent of the night-blooming jasmine growing outside our office window, because there's no way that I'm going to find the right adjectives to adequately describe how delicately, but firmly, those jasmine flowers perfume the sticky, warm breeze blowing in from the Gulf Coast this evening.
DAY AND NIGHT
If you walked by it during the day, you probably wouldn't notice this amazing little tree, because Cestrum nocturnum just looks like an ordinary, mild-mannered shrub. Even now, during the height of its blooming season, when it's thick green foliage is covered with hundreds of blossoms, they remain inconspicuous, looking like little bits of thick, off-white thread, closed in on themselves, the secret of their scent kept under tight wraps.
But shortly after nightfall, each one of those non-descript, limp threads has been magically transformed into a small, but stout trumpet, blaring out a distinctively haunting note which seems delicate from a distance, but becomes a loud, honking noise from up close.
TREASURED MOMENTS
If I'd stayed indoors all night, I'd probably miss it. But instead, as soon as I walk out the kitchen door, I'm floored by the heady smell, telling me to slow down, breathe deeply, and feel the fleeting nature of this precious moment. Reminding me once again that this gift is only available for a few hours nightly, a few weeks of the year. "Enjoy us while you can," sing the blossoms...
In this age of technological wonders, we've become so used to the availability of bright red strawberries from California (or Chili), plump green asparagus from Australia (or Mexico) and fresh-cut tulips from Holland (or Canada) year-round at the corner supermarket. To clicking on our smartphone and connecting instantly for a face-to-face chat with someone who is thousands of miles away. To switching on the thermostat and feeling warm as toast in winter, or cool as a cucumber in the heat of summer. And all of that is certainly wonderful.
HERE AND NOW
But the heady scent of this night-blooming jasmine pulls me fully into this one present moment now, reminding me that much of what is most precious and meaningful in life is transient. Local. Fleeting. Located just an arm's reach away, or right beneath my nose: a dear one's smile or loving touch; a songbird's call; the still small voice of Spirit -- all calling out to be recognized, realized and appreciated now... and now... and now.
With gratitude and hopes that you, too, are enjoying the blessings of summer,
Rudi
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