This wasn’t always the case. A few weeks ago, I stood in the Big Lots gardening aisle and held two bulb boxes in my hands. Day lily bulbs were on sale for only $2. Which should I choose? Pink or orange. The answer seemed so obvious. I left the store with an orange bulb, ready to plant it in an empty green pot immediately when I got home.

A few weeks ago, I was amazed to watch the first flower come to life in our yard. Since we moved here in winter, we didn’t know that the homeowners had planted flowers up the bank on the side of our house. I couldn’t believe it when I saw the orange lily pop open. I spent that day and the next few days taking pictures of these orange lilies. I was so excited to see flowers. I guess I’d never realized that Milledgeville was too hot for flowers like these. Even though they aren’t mine, I thought it was good practice taking these pictures for when my own container plants eventually have their first blooms.

But apparently orange lilies aren’t anything special. They keep showing up, day after day after day. I see them everywhere. Out our windows. In our side yard. In our backyard. Peeking out of our ravine. In the ivy at our driveway’s end. Across the street. In every house’s yard. In front of businesses. In the grassy median on the way to Walmart. Everywhere.

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