Why Lavender Waits to Bloom — Before breakfast, Vera tucked her cracked blue button into her pocket and walked between the sleeping lavender rows. Read the full story →
Before breakfast, Vera tucked her cracked blue button into her pocket and walked between the sleeping lavender rows. She wanted to be first to smell the purple bloom, but every bud stayed tight as a bead. The field was hushed except for shh-shh grass and the dry tickle of stems against her socks.
A tiny butterfly landed on her button, then lifted and dipped over one row, two rows, three. Vera did not chase. She waited while the sun warmed the hills like toast. At last the butterfly brushed the first bud, and pop—sweet peppery perfume slipped into the air. “So that’s the secret,” Vera whispered.
Ever since, lavender waits for the butterflies to count the rows before it opens. Next time you see those quiet stalks, can you find the patient path the butterfly counted first?