What's your favorite flower?

It's said that smell can spark a flurry of emotional memories, and maybe you've experienced this. Its flowers for me. I see a kind of flower and I can be overwhelmed with nostalgia.

I grew up in a Navy family, therefore we moved around most of my younger years. We lived in Tennessee for a period of my childhood. The first chunk of our time there, we lived in 'base housing'. That was great and all, living in a neighborhood full of family's with kids your age. But it was when we moved out to 'the country' when the highlight days of my childhood took place. We moved to Drummonds, TN. Ever heard of it? Probably not, even people I've met over the years that were born and raised in Tennessee don't know of this town. Its a tiny town North of Memphis made up of farmland. We moved to a house with 5 acres of land. As a 5 year old, the land stretched as far as I could imagine, there were pastures for miles to run free, fireflies to float with at dusk, and star gazing that would send your child mind into extraordinary wonder. These were mine and my sisters' glory days. We were able to get a few horses and go-karts with money we made as toddler clothing models in Japan, I'll save that story for another time.. Anyways, go-karts and horses! We spent our time after school taking care of the stables, horses, changing the oil in our go-karts and of course the fun stuff, riding the horses as fast as they'd go across the pastures, ripping the karts around the tracks we had set in around the perimeters of ours and our neighbors properties, and challenging each other at who could run the furthest barefoot down the mile long gravel driveway. I could go on and on about these times in Tennessee, but you're probably wondering, what does all this have to do with your favorite flower? Well every time we had to leave the house, whether it be going to town or riding the bus to school we had to drive past this one house. I remember it as a small house with a small garden in the side yard encompassed by endless pastures. And every time we passed the house, the little old lady would be out there tending her 50x50 plot of giant towering sunflowers. They were so much bigger than her she had to stand on a ladder to reach them. I loved this sight, so bright, and strong. They became my favorite flower because they were the first thing that really made me realize how much greater nature is than us, how a flower can stand so strong, so beautifully bringing me perspective of our smallness as humans. It made me want to be a giant sunflower and every time I see one, the glory days of my childhood flash behind my eyes and I get chicken skin remembering those times that brought so much joy to us.

Which flower brings back a memory for you? If you can't think of one now, maybe going forward when you stop to smell the flowers, remember the moment associated with that specific bloom. Really slow down to take it in and let the colorful world of flora spark nostalgia.