• Sometimes I lie down at night and listen. Just listen. Resting on my back with my head propped up on a single purple pillow that smelled faintly of lavender. I remember my mother loved the smell of lavender. She'd always tell me: "Do you know why I love lavender?" When I didn't answer she'd continue, "It's because you never grow tired of it. You can have it in your tea, for perfume, even as a candle." I think about what she said that day, "Lavender is a wild flower, you can always find it in the most unexpected of places. It brings a bright and exotic color to the overwhelming tan color of rocky deserts." She once gave me a cup of lavender tea, I thought it tasted bitter and nothing like the sweet smell of her perfume. She laughed at me when I told her, "My sweet child, in a way we are all like lavender. We can be wild and exotic and we can choose to surprise the people around us. It all depends on the places we choose to flourish and the color we choose to take." I never understood what she meant, as I was only six. I looked at her funny and squeaked, "But how are we flowers? We're people and not purple!" She only laughed at my comment. I think I understand it now. We can choose to stand out from the crowd if we flourish in the best environment for us, whether if its a hobby we love, the place we live, the people we surround ourselves with. Whatever it is, you can strive to survive even in the driest and terrible places if you believe you can. In a way...We are all like lavenders.