For those of you who were trapped in a hole for the last week or so, Texas and the US recently mourned the death of former First Lady, Claudia Taylor Johnson--better known as Lady Bird Johnson. Unfortunately, I was born several years after their time in the White House and never learned of what significant contributions they had in office, except that LBJ was scorned by many and blamed for the Vietnam War. I am much too ignorant of these matters to have an opinion of my own, but I have developed a great fondness for them both. If Mrs. Johnson had never passed away, I wonder if anyone had mentioned any of her contributions to environmental conservation.I can honestly attribute my fondness for flowers to Mrs. Johnson. Anyone who knows me knows that I love flowers and plants with a great passion [even though I may not have the greenest thumb]. This was due in large part to all of the beautiful flowers I'd see along the highways between family road trips to visit relatives. When I was a child--and up until last week--I'd look out the window of my car and catch every glimpse of
every flower I zoomed past. I'd ask my parents to pull over so that I can pick some to bring home with me [but, of course, we never did]. I always wonder how they got there. Who put them there? Why were they there? Growing up, I never learned of the Lady Bird Act, and being so young and naive, I just assumed that they were there to begin with and the road workers just tried to build the highways around the flowers. Then as I grew older and wiser, I figured, someone must have put them there or that the wind brought them there and they just spread like weeds. Up until last Wednesday, I believed this to be true. Now, I know that First Lady Johnson pushed to have this act passed and worked hard to conserve the natural beauty of Texas Land, and consequently the nation followed.
I am scrutinized by my friends and family because they think that I waste my money buying flowers. Many people think this because flowers wilt fast and you can only enjoy them for very short period of time, but I feel that [real] flowers and plants really change the mood of a room and its inhabitants. A small arrangement can have the ability to brighten up a room, turn a bad day around, or even make people more likeable--and anything that can do that so easily is well worth your money and time. I say time because I like to invest as much time as it takes to find the perfect flowers to make a beautiful bouquet. And my selections always depend on the person I am buying them for or my mood.
If something like this can have such great powers over a room or even a person's attitude and personality, think of what an impact it can have if it were spread across the land to grow and brighten everyone's day. I've always felt this way and apparently, so did Lady Bird.
