" The glory of thy perfect bloom! "

I have been fascinated by the Magnolia flower since I was introduced to it. Silas Weir Mitchell wrote “The glory of thy perfect bloom!” in his “To a Magnolia Flower in the Garden of the Armenian Convent at Venice” http://bartleby.com/248/519.html

In the Victorian era, the symbolic meaning of the magnolia was dignity, nobility, and perseverance. The bark of the tree was demonstrated to have medicinal uses for anti-anxiety effect. It has been documented that magnolias are ancient trees dating back to millions of years and that it was named for Louis XIV’s physician Dr. Magnol.

The magnolia is queen of all flowers resting on its shiny deep green leaves looking so majestic. There was a time I could not tolerate the scent of flowers, especially roses and carnations. When my father passed away, we received many flower arrangements that were kept a long time. And as they wilted, the scent became stale and that memory made me avoid flowers for a long time.

For my wedding, I had prepared a bouquet of artificial flowers to carry in the church because I didn't want the flowers to have any perfume. We were ready to go to church and, at the last minute, my girlfriend Azad arrived with a perfect bouquet of gardenias and insisted I get rid of my handmade artificial flowers. That was the magic moment--the reset button was pushed--and flowers became part of my life again.

I always think of the magnolia flower as a giant glorious gardenia dedicated to Azad my "aromatherapist".