Calendula - Marigolds

I remember these flowers adorning the shiny black braids of Indian women and pots and pots of these flowers in the nurseries for sale before Chinese New Year that people would buy to pave their driveways with 'gold'. They are undoubtedly attractive and used to full advantage in garden landscaping. Flowers I have often taken for granted because they are always present in great numbers until I watched the movie "Monsoon wedding" a touching story of love permeating through the various relationships that existed within an Indian family that withstood the destructive forces of lies and deceit with good, old values of honesty and sensitivity. There were marigolds aplenty in that engaging movie with an old-fashioned theme and perhaps they signify abundance, joy and sustenance. That was when I really took notice of this flower and appreciated it beyond its appearance that was ordinary because of sheer numbers. There are many different types of marigolds, the most common here is the one in this photo:These two flowers were photographed in Mt. Faber some time back and look different from the ones above. But they are marigolds. I thought that this flower will be a good choice for this first post of the year of 2007 because of its bright and cheery appearance. Happy New Year!