Love a flower

Is there any flower color more vibrant than bougainvillea? I think probably not. Because bougainvillea is already vibrant and blooms in abundance, crowding together to show off its color; as soon as one withers and falls, another immediately takes its place, thus maintaining that color for a long time.

Under the golden March sun, the bougainvillea flowers sway and giggle in the breeze, displaying their vibrant beauty against a backdrop of lush green leaves brimming with life. While everything else seems to wither under the scorching sun, these flowers burst with life—truly admirable.

I've loved the color of bougainvillea since I was a little girl. My father planted a bougainvillea vine in front of our house. In the sunny season, the plant bloomed beautifully, its vibrant red flowers illuminating the entire porch. The flowers made our house seem to glow; you could see the brilliant red from afar. The flowers silently witnessed my sisters and me growing up, then silently bid us farewell when our parents decided to renovate the house. I couldn't say goodbye to my childhood friend because I was studying far from home. When I returned, I found the porch renovated, and the plant's remains piled up in the garden waiting to dry before being burned. I silently said goodbye to my friend, a sadness creeping into my heart.

Since then, I've dreamed of building a small house and planting a bougainvillea trellis in front of it. Every sunny season, the vibrant flowers make the house stand out against the clear blue sky. Every morning, the yard is covered with fallen petals. Looking at the yard overflowing with red flowers, the sunlight dancing among them, it's such a delightful sight. Oh, what a beautiful flower, so vibrant from the moment it blooms until it withers! I feel sorry for that beautiful picture and can't bring myself to sweep it away, and I'm sure someone will be annoyed when they see it, judging the owner of the house as messy and lazy. Never mind. They don't love flowers as much as I do, so they won't understand the feeling of regret.

To this day, I haven't been able to fulfill that little dream. The small house is finished, but the bougainvillea trellis remains forever in my dreams because he doesn't like bougainvillea. He says it's too thorny, not good to grow, and not suitable for feng shui. I can only sigh. The gap between a dreamer and a practical person is vast. Well, I guess I'll just have to admire and love other people's flowers.

Because I love this flower of sunshine, I always look for and admire houses with bougainvillea-covered gates wherever I go. Now, bougainvillea comes in many more colors than before. People plant many plants together on one trellis, making them look very beautiful. Every time I pass someone's house with a thick bougainvillea trellis over their gate, I admire the homeowner. They invest in building trellises and meticulously train the flowers to climb in a circular arch, creating a truly stunning sight. Some homeowners even carefully coordinate the colors of the flowers; pink combined with white creates a gentle, poetic feeling, red interspersed with orange makes the house more vibrant and striking, and some even combine five colors – pink, orange, yellow, red, and purple – which, while beautiful, can be a bit overwhelming.

In the seaside city where I live, there's a famous cafe with bougainvillea flowers. Many people flock there not because it's big, fancy, or luxurious, nor because the drinks are delicious, but simply because of its beautiful bougainvillea trellis and breathtaking view. Located at a crossroads near the harbor, it's a small, unassuming cafe, yet somehow it looks incredibly beautiful in photos. Perhaps the bougainvillea trellis is what gives it its renowned view. As a result, the bougainvillea cafe appears quite frequently in photos shared on Facebook.

I love bougainvillea partly because of its delicate, vibrant beauty, and partly because few flowers possess such remarkable vitality. Simply cut a stem and plant it, and a new, tender green shoot will sprout. The plant grows very quickly, creeping along as desired, and within a few months it will bloom, with flowers lasting for several months. Planting a bougainvillea trellis in front of the house provides shade, protection from rain, and flowers to admire for months. And, the flowers require virtually no care. They simply grow, spreading and forming a wide canopy. In the dry season, only occasional watering is needed. Yet, the flowers remain vibrant, and the leaves stay lush and green, as if the plant thrives on the fresh air and dew.

Nowadays, people grow bougainvillea into bonsai. During Tet (Vietnamese New Year), besides apricot blossoms, peach blossoms, marigolds, lilies, etc., the streets are also ablaze with colorful bougainvillea bonsai trees. Each trunk is as thick as a fist, meticulously and skillfully shaped to create beautiful forms. People buy bougainvillea to decorate for Tet partly because it's beautiful and colorful, and partly because the flowers last a long time and are easy to care for. I look at these bougainvillea bonsai trees; I like them, but I don't love them. Suddenly, I feel something strange about them. Like a lost young girl in the city. Bougainvillea is a climbing plant; it needs to climb a trellis to fully display its beauty. Putting it in a pot, shaping it, and styling it... it feels so incredibly sad...

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