Nemunoki: The Sleeping Tree
A late July bloom of Nemunoki, backed by bamboo.This was the last photo I took in West Nowhere Japan before I left for my trip to America. Now that I am back home, it seems that all of the wonderfully Seussian Nemunoki flowers have passed on. Although my photo does them no justice, they are a wonderful sight, and add to the simple magic of the tree. Each flower is like a tiny tender pink feather duster standing on end, adding a wonderful hint of color to the summer foliage. The flowers drift down from the trees in the breeze, and decorate my lawn with fluffs of pink. I look forward the the Nemunoki flowers each year, much more so than the much heralded Cherry Blossoms in the spring. There is a level of understatement with the flowers of the Nemunoki which is entirely lacking in the barrage of pink that the Cherry Trees bring each year. While the Cherry Blossoms are short lived and stunning, the Nemunoki blossoms are lingering and elusive, but there for those of us who choose to look.
The Nemunoki seems to have a wisdom all its own. All throughout the green seasons, I tend to measure my days by the patterns of its leaves. As the day winds down, and the warming sun fades away, the leaves all fold inward as if tucking themselves in for the night. If I come home to find that the leaves have already retired for the night, I feel as if I have broken an unwritten rule. It is as if the tree knows when the day is done, and I should respect, and abide by it.