Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Quantum roses
Humans have an amazing ability to notice things and an even more amazing ability to unnotice things.
Last winter was a bad one, and in March I regretfully cut the rosebush on the east side of the porch down to the ground. At that point it had no live canes remaining. The bush on the west side continues to survive every winter with no trouble. It would probably take over the house if I let it.
Today I noticed that the east side rosebush has miraculously recovered from complete death and absence! It's about 3 feet tall, not blooming yet but all green and growing.
In declaring the east side bush dead, I must have created a 'blank zone' in my attention. The bush is directly under the mailbox, so my eyes have been looking at that bush without seeing it every time I check the mail.
The resilience of Nature is a wonder, but the vagaries of human thought are a different sort of wonder.
[Footnote 1: This is the second 'resurrection' for that bush, but the previous 'death' wasn't nearly as complete.]
[Footnote 2: As long as I'm doing Nature Notes, one more observation: Very few insects this year. Presumably the long hard winter and freezing spring cut their populations. All the plants have perfectly intact leaves; normally by late July the bugs would have chewed them pretty thoroughly.] ¶ 10:35 AM
Last winter was a bad one, and in March I regretfully cut the rosebush on the east side of the porch down to the ground. At that point it had no live canes remaining. The bush on the west side continues to survive every winter with no trouble. It would probably take over the house if I let it.
Today I noticed that the east side rosebush has miraculously recovered from complete death and absence! It's about 3 feet tall, not blooming yet but all green and growing.
In declaring the east side bush dead, I must have created a 'blank zone' in my attention. The bush is directly under the mailbox, so my eyes have been looking at that bush without seeing it every time I check the mail.
The resilience of Nature is a wonder, but the vagaries of human thought are a different sort of wonder.
[Footnote 1: This is the second 'resurrection' for that bush, but the previous 'death' wasn't nearly as complete.]
[Footnote 2: As long as I'm doing Nature Notes, one more observation: Very few insects this year. Presumably the long hard winter and freezing spring cut their populations. All the plants have perfectly intact leaves; normally by late July the bugs would have chewed them pretty thoroughly.] ¶ 10:35 AM
