As a universally acknowledged symbol of the hope, joy and pep of spring, you might think it’d be impossible to find someone who didn’t like daffodils, but I’m here to prove you wrong (apologies to the entirety of Wales, I guess!)
I’d always thought of daffodils as almost offensively boring, so plain that it hurt. The outline of a tulip might look like what you’d get if you asked a toddler to draw a flower, but at least it comes in loads of different colours (plus, I learned later, the flowers are totally transformed with the petals teased out — shoutout to Elspeth at Blume for blowing my mind with that.) Sure, daisies are here, there and everywhere, but at least you can make jewellery out of them!
So why am I now, as I type, staring at a big pink vase full of daffodils in my living room?
A few weeks ago on our walk to do the big shop, we passed a grassy verge bursting with daffodils. There must have been hundreds of them clustered, shooting out of the ground to herald the beginning of spring. My partner Rich caught sight of them and smiled. “I love daffodils,” he said. “They’re so silly. They always make me laugh because they remind me of honking geese.”
And in that moment, looking through his eyes, I fell in love with daffodils.
Today Rich and I celebrate our 10 year anniversary.
We’ve lived pretty much our entire adult lives with each other, and everyday brings new joy. His is the kind of love that solidifies clichés as much as it defies them. He doesn’t “complete” me — I’m whole in and of myself, thankyaverymuch — but my life and I are so much better for him being in it.
In a world where I’ve often been made to feel like I’m too much, he loves me for all of it (not “despite it”, a very important distinction) and encourages me to be the most me I can be.
However you get that feeling, you deserve to feel like the most and best ‘you’ you can be. You deserve to know the all-encompassing joy of shining as your full self.
Thank you for showing me the beauty of daffodils, and the beauty of life at its fullest.
Stopppp 🥹 Happy Anniversary to you and lovely Rich! ❤️🌷
The phrase “walk to do the big shop” has just blown my mind! 🤯
That must be a very heavily laden and tedious walk back?!?