October Flower

 Mr. ShellHawk and I moved into our current home three years ago, this month. As he was working 110 hours a week from the second we moved here, it fell to me to do the bulk of the unpacking and organizing of the household.

The weather is generally pretty mild in Northern California in October. Storms don't usually start until the end of the month (eek!) or November, and you can still plant trees and various other greenery so they'll get all the nice rain over the winter and be fairly established by the time spring arrives. Since the weather was so nice at the time we moved in, I'd open up all the windows in the house to let the breezes through.

With the breezes came this amazing, heavenly scent, on one side of the house. I took a break from unpacking to track it down and discovered this little orange flower on this bush.

Little orange flower clusters that look something like tiny jasmine or orchids release that huge, beautiful scent that floats through my bedrooms like a promise. It starts to bloom towards the end of September, and remains green throughout the rest of the year. I hadn't run across this plant before I moved here.

To this day, I couldn't tell you the name of the plant if my life depended on it. I always mean to find out, because I'd like to plant a few more along our back fence for scent and privacy, but I never seem to get around to it. Can you believe I don't have time to look it up in October? Shocking!

For all time, though, it will be emblazoned on my mind as the October Flower, whatever its real name is.