Shelter in Place, San Francisco, California, July 20, 2020

This lovely Madeira Crested Violet (Argyranthemum frutescens), also known as Paris or margarite daisy, outdid itself this spring, nearly doubling in size and rewarding us for weeks on end with a lovely mound of pink that proved a focal point along the patio’s edge. I dead-headed the flowers as they faded in hopes that new ones would take their place, but slowly the daisy’s branches bared and the plant faded into background. Now, weeks later, one single bloom has reappeared among the cut-off stems. Are there more to come? I’m hoping. But even if this is the single one to grace our garden in a second round, I’m grateful. It’s the small things - the little miracles - we notice these days, the ones we cannot count on or control anymore, but which brighten our days if even for a moment. This daisy is a sign of life, a second chance, a metaphor for those small pleasures we once took for granted.