REACT…the plum blossom

October 1, 2011 · by microrrelatososhortstories · in REACT. ·

"Clustering Chinese Plum Blossoms" by Chen Xianzhang (1428–1500) of the Ming Dynasty

I’ve always loved this flower

the shape of the petals, oval with a pointed tip;

the color, shades of white, pink and red

the oh-so crooked but strong-looking branches that can grow from 4 to 10m tall

My admiration has been from afar,

I’ve only seen them in paintings but that’s been enough for me to love them

If I had a chance to see a real one, I could add the strong frangrant scent to my description

by Zheng Faxiang

I did a little investigating and I was happily surprised to read about the Japanese and Chinese symbolism or cultural significance they’ve given it:

IN CHINESE CULTURE, the plum blossom represents winter. To them it symbolizes STRENGTH, RESILIENCE and THE ABILITY TO OVERCOME ADVERSITY because it has this unique blooming period which happens in the dead of winter amidst the winter snow exuding a certain ethereal elegance.

It also came to symbolize PERSEVERANCE and HOPE, BEAUTY, PURITY, and the transitoriness of life.

In Confucianism, the plum blossom stands for the principles and values of VIRTUE,

Wikipedia contributors. "Prunus mume." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Now, IN JAPANESE CULTURE, the plum blossom is treated as an EARLY SIGN OF SPRING, THE BEGINNING OF A SEASON OF WARMTH AND FERTILITY

"Little Plum Blossom of Hill Garden" (山園小梅) by poet Lin Bu (林逋) of the Song Dynasty (960–1279)

Some years ago I started a course in the art of Chinese painting but I could never achieve the peace and serenity inherent to the culture and needed to get the brush strokes you can admire in their works of art.

Now, that I feel more in control of my life and have given myself the chance to have my happiness as one of my priorities I DEFINITELY HAVE TO TAKE UP THIS ART AGAIN and will give a plum blossom painting a try!

IF THE PLUM BLOSSOM REPRESENTS YOU go out and look for one, you can find lots of options in art galleries or even better GO FIND YOURSELF THE REAL THING AND FEEL IT’S STRENGTH AND RESILIENCE TO OVERCOME ADVERSITY become a part of you!!