Sundogs and Halos

  For the past two days, a weather phenomenon graced the Bayou with its beauty.  Mid-afternoon found me on the pier both days.  As the sun was starting that early slide down the western horizon, a halo formed around the sun with two sundogs on either side.  The halo is formed by the refraction of light on ice crystals up in the atmosphere.  The sundogs are bright spots on that halo. Sometimes, only one can be seen but, usually, a pair flank the sun. These are caused by the ice crystals being a bit larger and differently shaped than the others. The halo only lasts for a short time and is seen, more oft than not, when the sun is near the horizon.  It is one of those "being in the right spot at the right time" sort of occurrences.  Each day, I was in that perfect place to witness this bit of beauty.  

  When you think about it, these weather phenomenons caused a lot of uproar back through the ages. Everything from "false suns" to "end of times" tags were attached to the halos and sundogs.  The unexplained frightened folks.  A lot of folks are just as gullible today.  What is not clearly evident is easily manipulated into something scary.  Me?  I take it as something to enjoy while it lasts.  I figure it was a pretty special show performed just for my enjoyment.  In a way, I am correct on that.  Since this whole phenomenon depends upon the set up of ice crystals and the way light refracts and reflects on them, each person sees their "own" halo and sundogs.  Even if a person stands right next to you, they are seeing light reacting on different crystals so their halo is unique to them.  Pretty neat thing, huh?  
  
  To see the sundogs for two days in a row is also rather special.  My special, spectacular. celestial light show was set up just for me!  Yep, there is always something new happening on the Bayou...and in your own backyard if you just take the time to step outside and view it.  Try it. It sure beats being cooped up inside all day.

Angel Wings and Halos!

Sometimes things just have a way of finding their way back home.  I am now in possession of a plant that came from the old farm place.  Mom had very few potted houseplants because she always said that she did not have a "green thumb".  The few she kept on the screened porch did remarkably well in spite of this claim.  Granted a good bit of their care fell to Pop, the farmer.  He would repot the plants each spring and fertilize them throughout the growing season.  The "care" that Mom showed was careful watch on the soil.  If it became dry, she watered.  Like I said, the plants flourished under this dual-care system and grew to great sizes.  They always bloomed profusely which was much to Mom's delight.  Probably her favorite of all houseplants was the Angel Wing Begonia.  I can fully understand her admiration of this plant.  It is quite beautiful!

A couple of weeks ago, my brother toted a huge potted plant down to the Little Bayou House.  "Here." he said...that was it.   "Here."  This brother is one of those folks that can say a lot in just a few words.  He could have said some "flowery" little speech about how he wanted to give me this gorgeous plant that he had babied all of these years.  He could have pointed out that albeit cracked, it was planted in one of Mom's large terra cotta pots.  He could have told me that he did this because he loved me and I was his favorite sister!  Ok, so that last one was stretching it a bit but, hey, a girl can dream!  Anyway, he just said "Here."  I had to drag out the part about this being Mom's plant and her flower pot.  He did profess that he was giving the plant to me because he did not want to drag it inside with every threat of a freeze.  Ha!  See, I know better than that!  He secretly does think I am his favorite sister!!  Now the plant sits in my entryway so it can be seen by everyone that enters!  This evening, I went to lock the door and was astounded by the plant.  Earlier I had turned on a heat lamp to protect the tender foliage.  The way the light was illuminating the plant was most fitting!  The plant had a lovely glow about it.  My Angel Wing Begonia had a halo!

The Angel Wing Begonia is actually a hybrid begonia.  It is a cross between a begonia aconitifolia and a begonia coccinea.  A lady named Eva Kenworthy Gray crossed the two in 1926 and came up with the lovely Angel Wing.  She named it thus because of the shape of the individual leaves.  These leaves have a wonderful speckled appearance but they are not the plant's only claim to fame.  The plant has great clusters of reddish pink blooms almost endlessly during the warmer months.

Now that the Angel Wing has come to be part of the Little Bayou House, I sure hope that I can care for it just as Mom and Pop did and with the continued loving care that my brother gave it.  I would love to have a long screened porch with rocking chairs and Angel Wing Begonias.....just like at the old farm.  (Oh, and just to be honest, my brother, Tommy,  has one of these for our sister, Susan, as well.  I guess he loves her, too.  But I am his favorite!  Just saying!.....Maybe?)