pressing flowers

Readers, I have been gone for what seems life forever, and i've missed writing so much. School consumes my life, and what little spare time I've been given over the last week and a half, I have used to sleep.

But isn't that the way it goes? Time is money, so don't waste it. Everything is done right here, right now. Do this, do that, as fast as you can. RSVP ASAP. No late work. Up-to-the-minute reporting. Timeliness. NO! SLEEP! TIL BROOKLYN! (reference here)

Everything we do must be done quickly and as efficiently as possible. Now, I'm not knocking timeliness and productivity for the sake of adequate and needed progress both in school and in everyday life. But...

Every now and then, we need to slow down. We should stop and smell the roses.

If you don't already know, I consider myself a crafty person. Not in a manipulative or sneaky sense, but in a much more literal one. I love arts and crafts. Hobby Lobby is one of my favorite stores, and I jump in excitement over a DIY project.

My roommate shares in this love of creativity, so we are always showing each other fun little projects we've taken on. I make collages, she paints, and so on.

Last week, we were in our kitchen admiring a bouquet of gerber daises (my favorite) that Cavner gave me for our anniversary. They were starting to wilt, so my roommate suggests a crafty alternative to just throwing the bright cheery flowers away.

"You really should press those."

I've heard of pressing flowers before, and like any crafty person, I was all for it.

So my roommate walked me through the process.

First, we cut the stems completely off.

Then we placed them between two sheets of tissue paper.

Finally, we closed the flowers into the largest book we could find in the apartment. After that, we stacked object after object on top of the book, making sure to pancake the heck out of these flowers. The end result of our efforts created a rather comical display of shelves, paint cans, and other heavy things stacked one on tp of the next in our living room.

After we balanced the paint can on top of the shelves on top of the book, I asked my roommate when they would be totally pressed.

"I'd give them about a month."

A month?! An entire month??!!! For flowers, no less! Why in the world would I wait that long for flowers? Why would I wait that long for anything??

Another thing about me is that I am a huge fan of instant gratification. If I want it, I don't really want to wait on it. But with these flowers, I'm understanding that some things are worth waiting for. Some things take time, and sometimes, those are the we remember most.

I don't know how my flowers will turn out yet. They still have to sit under those shelves for another three weeks or so. But every now and then I catch myself thinking about what next project i can use them in once they are ready. It's kind of thrilling, this waiting.