Ever woke up in the morning feeling like someone just straight punched you in the mouth??!! Like….seriously went Sugar Ray Leonard on your face! That’s how I felt both yesterday AND this morning when I woke up! I kept trying to figure out what in the wide world is going on!?!?!? And then I remembered!! ALLERGIES!!!!!!! I don’t know what it is about the plants and grass here in Texas but they sure do a number on me and the girls! Sheesh!
Even still……I could not help myself!!! See, we lived about 15 minutes from Target and about 25 minutes from Keller; basically, we were living that country life, y’all!!! Spring was so refreshing for me because wildflowers were EVERYWHERE!!!!! I’m not sure if they grow naturally or if seed is thrown out – I mean….even the neutral grounds (median, for those of you who are not from NOLA) are filled with wildflowers! And I LOVE it!!!
Anyways, from our house, there were a few different routes you can take to get into town, but my favorite was the scenic route. On the way, there was a set of train tracks surrounded by over-grown grass with tons of plants and flowers (Chris calls them weeds ; ). In this particular spot, you could always see the most beautiful plants! Right now there are TONS of sunflowers in addition to these little purple things that look like mini pineapples.
So when we had to actually STOP and wait for the train to pass, I made it a habit of enjoying the flowers that are in bloom. So as fate would have it, I got caught by the train this morning and I could not have been more excited!!! I had been eyeing these little guys for a few days now and I couldn’t wait to see it up close. I just had to pick one!!!
I flung my door open, ran around to the grassy area and snapped a piece off as fast as I could! I quickly realized that those little pointy green things are PICKERS!!! I got stabbed about 4 times and it felt like mini knives with poison on the tips! OUCH!!!! Nonetheless, I jumped back in the car and snapped this picture right quick. Such an odd but beautiful looking flower! To be honest, I threw that sucker right out of the window about 10 minutes after I took this picture…whatever was in this thing SUCKER PUNCHED ME AGAIN!!!! WHY! WHY! WHY must one of the things I love the most knock me on my tail the quickest?!?! Y’all! My eyes started watering and my head was pounding….and I knew exactly what was going on. Out the window, it went! Nonetheless, I learned a thing or two and I’m glad I took the time to take it all in!
Moral of the story:
1 – Make the time to “take it all in”… see and notice the incredible things around you and allow yourself to be inspired by them!! Everywhere you look, you can find something of great beauty! Beautiful people, beautiful scenery, beautiful sounds, smells…..whatever it is that you find beautiful….make time for it (even if it’s just while waiting for a train to pass)! It will refresh you and kick off those good endorphins that everyone needs : )!!
2- If you pick flowers on side of the road, it may be a good idea to look before you grab!! I made the SAME dang mistake with SUNFLOWERS!!!!! Now PLEASE!!!!!!! I know that there’s a purpose for everything but needle-like STICKERS ON SUNFLOWERS?!?!?!?!? That will be one of my many questions when I get to heaven! For now, I’ve learned my lesson and I will not forget it!
P.S. Eryngo (Eryngium Leavenworthii ) is the “official” name of this beauty...or as I call it, a Texas wildflower that looks like a purple pineapple!