The Orchid
She was not healthy. In fact, she appeared to be near death. I have no pictures of her at this time, never dreaming that one day I would wish to document her amazing recovery. My friend gave her to me to resuscitate. She was blooming beautifully when my friend received her as a gift, but now that the flowers were gone, the plant languished in less than optimal conditions.
I have an affinity for plants, especially flowers. We talk. I believe in their magic and somehow connect to it. My friend knew this, so the orchid was now mine. My previous experience with orchids though, had not been successful. On more than one occasion I had not been able to get an orchid to rebloom. But that was before I understood Nature, her energy, and realized that I had energy skills. I had also been introduced to the energy and power of crystals.
The orchid was in a shiny red ceramic pot. I walked around the house carrying her with me, talking to her and to Nature both. I did consult my orchid book for guidelines, but mostly I talked to her. Where was the best place for her to rest? We wandered into the bathroom, the bathroom?, and it all made sense. There is a skylight that provides a great deal of light, but no direct sunlight on her. I take a daily hot shower, a longer than average one, and the air becomes warm and moist. Here, she said. Here, Nature said. Okay, I said, but the glass shelf is narrow, and your leaves will be crowded. Not a problem, I heard. What I did then, and I am not clear how I was guided to do this, I took the cluster of Celestite crystals that had been on the shelf and tucked it under her arching leaves, near the base of the red pot.
I watered her once a week. Conventional advice is to put a few ice cubes on an orchid since they don’t need much water. Now really, if you were a tropical plant that loves warm moist air, would you like it if someone suddenly placed ice cubes on you?! I used lukewarm tap water instead.
I talked to her every day. I had no idea what a new stem would look like. My orchid book did not have a picture. I was encouraged that she was growing new roots.. The original stem was still part of her, clipped to a supporting stick… hmm… an unnatural substance. I pulled the stick out, and let the stem float free. The days passed.
I do not remember when I received her into my care, so I do not know how many days passed before I observed a new growth that looked a little different than a root. Could it be? Yes! Each day revealed that she was growing a new stem. Watching the stem grow, seeing the little bumps on the end that would eventually be flowers confirmed my belief in the energetic connection between her, Nature, the crystal, and me. I talked to her even more.
As the stem grew longer, I trimmed the original stem and used it to support the new growth. The buds grew bigger and finally, one day, I walked into the bathroom and there it was, the first bloom!
Magic. Exciting. Beautiful.
And there were more buds to open!
A month later, there were eight gorgeous blooms. There would have been nine, but I had accidentally knocked off one of the buds when adjusting the stem support.
She was happy. I was happy. Then three months later, all eight blooms intact, I noticed that there was new growth at the end of the stem. Omigosh she was putting out more buds! There were three more flowers to bloom! This was a gift from Nature more precious than money could buy.
The blooms lasted a long time. Eight months from the first one opening to the last. I was amazed at their longevity. When they were ready to go, though, they dropped quickly. I couldn’t bear to discard the faded blooms. I have learned from flowers that there is beauty in the old as well as in the new.
I wasn’t sure what would happen next. Was her energy spent? Would she bloom again? Did I have to repot her? So many questions. The book indicated that repotting is helpful because the roots do not like to be crowded. Selfishly, I did not want to repot her because I loved the red pot, and anything bigger would not fit on the shelf. I asked her and she said wait. Two of the oldest arching leaves faded and dropped off. I cut back the second stem. I almost killed her by overwatering, when I changed the size of the glass I used. Less than attentive to the quantity of water, the situation reached a tipping point when I noticed a terrible smell in the house, especially near the bathroom. Mold? A dead animal in the attic? No, the odor came from her, and I finally realized that her roots were rotting in the excess water. I dumped it out, apologized, and cut back severely on how much water I gave her. She also let me know that she did not want her roots disturbed and that I was not to repot her.
Fast forward four months, and there is a new stem, with buds. Perhaps I have found her cycle, for she bloomed in January last year, and appears to be on a similar time line. I am looking forward to the beauty of her blooms once again. I am indeed blessed to be the recipient of such glory.
~ the end ~
by Sue Brandell