Water
lilies
There is a star-shaped
pond in the school front court. Though small, the pond is the most elegant attraction
of the campus and students’ most popular hangout.
Every now and then,
one or two water lilies in different colours ranging from salmon pink to
lavender purple would blossom in solitude at different corners of the pond. They
close as the sun sets. We joke that these flowers work shorter hours than we
do.
One morning as I
stepped in the campus, Uncle Hon the gardener, with a broad smile on his face,
pointed to one water lily and asked me to have my phone camera ready. There it
was – bingdi lily or a lily with two corollas
that should actually bloom into two flowers! Needless to say, thir ls flower
became the campus talk for a couple of days.
I could have just
walked past this rare sight had I not been kindly directed by Uncle Hon to
appreciate it. That is us – we take our neighbourhood and the people around us
for granted with little attention and rare appreciation. We do not see beauty
in our city but travel far for exotic views. We are numb to the loving care of
our family but keep chasing for fatal attractions. Since that day, every morning when I arrive at
school, I do not just glance at the lilies but instead circle round the pond to
smell in the fragrance and to take a good look at the delicate flowers and waxy
leaves!
