Sunday, July 01, 2007

Asparagales Iridaceae Iris

Last Sunday was a little bit of a downer for me. I was supposed to make it to Sackville, New Brunswick to attend a luncheon that was held for my Aunt Judith. Instead, due to a malfunctioning phone, I was unaware that my ride had arrived and therefore missed this very special occasion. In 0rder to try to offset my lousy mood that obviously followed this tragic event, my wonderful boyfriend suggested that we go enjoy the lovely day at the Public Gardens. To preoccupy me, Dan gave us each a task: Photograph at least one photo to be printed.

Although I still don't have much faith in my photography skills, I chose one picture (please note; this photo looks much better on my computer than it looks on blogger):


I don't claim to be much of a flower connaisseur, but after a few minutes of Google research, I came to the conclusion that this flower is an iris. The word iris comes from the Greek word for rainbow. Iris was the Greek Goddess of the rainbow, a mythical messenger figure. She would slide down the rainbow, the connecting arc between the clouds and the sea; between earth and sky; between the gods and humanity. As the personal messenger of Hera, the goddess of women and marriage, Iris would travel down to earth and transport women to the afterlife.


The three upright petals of the iris, along with the tree drooping sepals represent faith, valor, and wisdom.

Out of the number of photos that I had to chose from, this photo in particular is special because of the symbolism. The faith, valor, and wisdom that is evoked upon looking at this flower are the same evoked thoughts when reflecting upon my Aunt.

The Iris

The gods painted the rainbow
With the petals of the iris
As a bridge to connect
Cloud and Water
Heaven and Earth
God and Men

The colours of the rainbow
The aesthetics of the iris
Is the beauty of the woman
With Faith
With Valor
With Wisdom