Cosmos by Charlotte

Charlotte took this beautiful photograph of a Cosmos flower in ‘Chicken’ Grandma and Grandad’s garden (she calls them ‘chicken’ thanks to the great animal sounds my Mum – a former primary school teacher – has made on frequent telephone calls between the UK and NZ!). Unfortunately for my parents the name seems to have stuck!

Charlotte’s Grandma plants Cosmos in her garden every August, in fond memory of her own father (Charlotte’s Great Grandfather). When walking in the beautiful Lost Gardens of Heligan, Cornwall, through a breathtaking scene of hundreds of colourful Cosmos, she felt a deep chill and couldn’t explain feeling so cold on such a steaming, hot day. When she returned to her hotel there was a message that her father had passed away that afternoon, and all was explained.

Now she enjoys the perfect beauty of these flowers, named by Spanish priests who grew cosmos in their mission gardens in Mexico. The evenly placed petals led them to christen the flower “Cosmos,” the Greek word for harmony or ordered universe.

They bring to Charlotte’s Grandma fond memories of her father, who was a keen and gifted gardener. It seems that Charlotte has inherited a love of natural beauty.