Lotus Blossom, 2 of 2: With Beauty May I Walk

Remember yesterday's lotus blossom bud, so full and ready to bloom that it looked like it was just about to burst?

I visited the Arboretum again this morning, and lo and behold, the lotus I saw yesterday was blooming! Hooray! I was so happy to have seen it that I did a little happy dance around the lily pond!

Today is the solstice, the longest day of the year and the official start of summer. What a wonderful way to begin the longest day! All I could think to myself was this phrase over and over: "She walks in beauty . . ." For surely I do. Not like the night, though. More like the morning.

I found a Navajo prayer that captures the way I feel when visiting a garden, especially in the morning:

"With beauty may I walk.
With beauty before me, may I walk.
With beauty behind me, may I walk.
With beauty above me, may I walk.
With beauty below me, may I walk.
With beauty all around me, may I walk.

In age old wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk.
In age old wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk.

It is finished in beauty.
It is finished in beauty."


P.S. The lotus flower is full of symbolism for some cultures. To learn more, you can do a search on "lotus flower meaning." I did, and here are a few of the links I found interesting. Enjoy!

Legend of the Lotus
Lotus Flower Meaning
Lotus - The Flower, The Symbol