Photo Challenge: EVANESCENT
“Human life is as evanescent as the morning dew or a flash of lightning.” Samuel Butler
Photo Challenge: EVANESCENT – The Short-lived Widow’s Tears Flowers
Men are more evanescent than pictures, yet one sorrows for lost friends, and pictures are my friends. I have none others. I am never long enough with men to attach myself to them; and whatever feelings of attachment I have are to material things. John Ruskin
When I saw the theme for today’s photo challenge – EVANESCENT – the first thing that came to mind was the beautiful purplish blue Widow’s Tears flowers I have growing in the front of my garden and propagating on the stone walkway. They are variously known as Widow’s Tears/Commelina and/or Spiderworts/Tradescantia, and what distinguishes them from many of the floras we enjoy in our garden is their vanishing, short-lived quality. Like Morning Glory, they bloom brightly in the morning light, displaying their beautiful three petals and grass-like, long spindly leaves fully open. At the center of each colorful bloom is a stamen with yellow pollen tips tilting slightly like spider legs. As the day progresses, they start to wilt and by midday, their short and pretty lifespan ends, leaving behind shriveled petals and hundreds of dangling buds that will bloom the next day. Like the cycle of life all living things go through, these and other ephemeral plants live theirs briefly … reminding us to enjoy the evanescence of each moment.
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“Success is transient, evanescent. The real passion lies in the poignant acquisition of knowledge about all the shading and subtleties of the creative secrets.” Konstantin Stanislavsky
Photo Challenge: EVANESCENT – The Short-lived Widow’s Tears Flowers
What more can we say about Evanescent/Ephemeral plants? They have a magical quality, albeit a transient one, that reminds us to be present to the beauty around us. Sure, one could show the setting sun, a flash of lightening or even a cloud changing shape before our eyes; all are terrific examples of the word Evanescent which means things that are short-lived and that vanish in a short period of time. I chose these flowers because I’ve always marveled at their transient beauty and the manner in which they return again and again, bravely, blooming their purplish blue hearts out, on their way to a quick demise. Flowers like Widow’s Tears/Commelina and/or Spiderworts/Tradescantia, Morning Glories and other short-lived ephemeral plants live each moment blooming at their fullest and best and then disappear. Their very presence gives us beauty, joy, and hope for the future while reminding us to enjoy what we hold dear every day and in every way.
This post was inspired by a prompt from WP Daily Post: EVANESCENT – This week, this challenge is wide open. Evanescent can be any fleeting moment in time. It could be the moment you drop a seed into your garden, marking that promise of new growth to come. It could be a photo of the Eastern Phoebe that visits your deck each day, wagging her tail as she calls her own name. If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, it could be that carpet of leaves that fell overnight, before the wind scatters them. It might be the moment you light the first fire of Fall.
Positive Motivation Tip: Enjoy the evanescence of each moment.
PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: All Photos from my personal collection
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet
Trackbacks
- Evanescent – Photo Challenge – Ladyleemanila
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Evanescent | Ruined for Life: Phoenix Edition
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Evanescent | Jinan Daily Photo: The Sequel
- Evanescant: Front | What's (in) the picture?
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Evanescent | No Fixed Plans
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Friend(ship) | Ruined for Life: Phoenix Edition
Those widow’s tears are really pretty. I don’t have many flowers in my yard, but I wish I did 🙂
Plant a few… You’d be surprised how quickly your garden will grow.
Beautiful photos and interpretation.
Thank you Miriam… I enjoyed your post on slowing down. 🙂
Thanks Elizabeth. So lovely to meet you. You have a beautiful blog. 🙂
The sentiments are mutual. 🙂
Thanks! 🙂
Wow that photo is stunning. Love the way you looked at this challenge.
This is such a beautiful flower.
What a beautiful flower! I’ll have to look up more on the history of the Widow’s Tears, it’s an interesting name for a flower.
Short lived… but can be so strong and powerful! These flowers are stunning and such a beautiful visual of the word!
I recognize that flower — I never knew what it was called. Growing up, the sweet purple flowers used to beckon to me as I would pass them by on the way to my school.
I admit, I had to Google “evanescent” to make sure I knew what it meant. Kudos to you for checking my vocabulary! Those Widow’s Tears flowers are gorgeous!
I love the message behind these images. Definitely enjoy each moment! Time seems to fly by, but taking in each moment helps us to stay grounded.
These are beautiful flowers! There is something about flowers that offer hope and inspiration and remind us to stop and enjoy the simple beauty in our world.
These flowers are beautiful. Even though flowers die quickly I love their beauty and how they can just brighten up your day and a room in the house.
Those Widow’s Tears flowers are so beautiful. I always plant Morning Glories around my deck in the spring.
Those are some amazing shots of those flowers. You must have an amazing professional camera!
I have a Canon Rebel Ti series. It works fine… I’d love a new one. TY!
I love the color of this flower. I also think it’s cool how everyone has their own definition when they look at the term evanescent.
True… The meaning is short-lived and vanishing but the interpretations are endless.
I love purple! This flower looks so fresh! You captured it in a very professional way!
Beautiful photos! I love how vivid the colour of Widow’s Tears Flowers is – I’ve never seen them around here, but would love have some in the garden! x
An interesting interpretation of this word! These are such beautiful flowers. So pretty.
I’ve actually never heard of this word before so very enlightening, love the connection with the flower, it’s such a beautiful colour x
The flowers are beautiful! I have been wanting to plant some flowers around my house but just haven’t had the time.
Wow! I never put such deep thought to find meanings! You did a great job.
Wow those flowers are so beautiful. I love the bright and vibrant purple color and they’re so pretty. It’s crazy how many interpretations over it there are.
Nature is full of evanescent qualities. I think it gives you something to look forward to and reminds us to be appreciative of the short time we have to see things like flowers.
I wish I had green fingers! I seem to only be able to keep succulents alive! haha 😉
I love the message behind it. Be in moment, savor the beauty that is in front of you before it fades once again. I think these flowers remind us of how quick life moves and how we should learn to cherish it. So beautiful and profound.
Thank you Amanda! They are a great reminder. 🙂
Seriously you are rocking the selection of quotes! I love reading your posts, so inspirational 🙂
Thank you Nadine! 🙂
So pretty! I would love to have some flowers around my yard, hopefully at my next house I can have a pretty garden with gorgeous flowers.
That’s a great photo! And I love your way of thinking and how you chose that photo.
What a great flower – so many shades to the color and you described it beautifully!
Those flowers are very pretty. We have something similar growing in our mulch out front. It might be some type of weed, but it is very pretty in my opinion. I have asked my husband not to mow them down.
These pictures are amazing! They are so neat, clean and detailed! The flower is gorgeous! I did not know this specie before! Taking pictures of nature is amazing! I always tell myself I should do it more often! Just waiting for a sunny day here in England! xx corinne
I’ve been planting more and more flowers. These purple ones are just so beautiful.
I’ve been planting more flowers this year. I use it as a relaxing time to myself. I love those purple flowers
I love flowers but never tried to grow them, I’m always afraid that the flowers will die and I will feel so bad for not taking good care of them! Beautiful clicks though!
I am just in awe of the color of these. So gorgeous. It makes me wish I could grow flowers.
I can relate the word “Evancescent” to the “relationship” of young people. They always think they have found true love and put so much of themselves into it. Young love is a memorable experience, but it is only temporary. Most of us will outgrow the other and lose the “love” we thought would last till eternity.
Wow beautiful photos! Those flowers are so pretty!!
Just beautiful!!!!! I love flowers!!!! How can anyone not?!?! They are so pretty!
Love the vibrant colours of the flowers you have here! Awesome photos! I’m not sure what makes me think of evanescent… I’ll have to sit on that a bit more!
I love this photo challenge. I like how open it is to interpretation. These beautiful flowers really capture the fleeting sense of our lives and how quickly it can pass by.
These plants have beautiful purple flowers. I think my mother-in-law have an abundance of them in her backyard garden. My backyard garden is looking pretty sad right now since we haven’t done a good job taking care of it .
The The Widow’s Tears plant sure do capture beauty around us! I really want to get some to plant in my yard. Hopefully, the deer won’t eat them.
You always have the most beautiful photos with your posts! These shots are no exception, I also found your interpretation interesting, because you are right you could draw so many pictures to mind.
What beautiful flowers and a lovely reminder to appreciate the small things that are all around us. How wonderful that something with such a short life can still make such a long-lasting impression. It’s really puts the idea of living in the moment and making the most of each day into perspective
I have never heard of widow’s tears before. They are beautiful and do reassemble the morning glory!
Love the photos. The flowers are so beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
I love evanescent flowers too..though I never thought to call them as such. Lovely.
I didn’t know about these plants until now. It’s so beautiful, how it would bloom and die out in the same day. It’s a reminder that we should learn how to treasure the moments that we have in life.
The flowers are just beautiful even with their slight color change. Isn’t it crazy to think about how quickly time can vanish from us ?
I would want to start planting and see how beautiful plants could be. I love how you capture the flowers. So beautiful.
The way you interpreted it was beautiful, being present in the beauty around us. 🙂 The flower is beautiful too. I’m not sure if we’ve ever had that in our garden back in the farm.
Nice photos and interpretation. Love those flowers, so small and fragile
I love those flowers – so vibrant. I actually haven’;t heard the word Evanescent in a long time. Beautiful!
What kind of camera do you use? Your pictures are so clear and those flowers are so pretty.
I had no idea that the other name for these were Widow’s Tears. Spiderwort has become one of my favorite flowers in recent years. I’ve always been intrigued how it closes up midday.
They’re very pretty flowers. I’d love to have a little flower bed in my garden.
This is such a pretty flower. I’ve been loving flowers and taking pictures of them at the moment. I haven’t heard of this one but it is beautiful.
Everything we see around us is temporary. Their life span is limited. They have a shortlived existence like the flower you have featured here. But it has its naturalness and beauty to be appreciated as God’s creation just like us. -Gil Camporazo
Lovely photos, you did great at capturing true nature. I love the colors of the flowers too so bright and vibrant.
Those flowers are beautiful. I suppose that this means that butterflies and bees are also evanescent. I love your pictures.
What beatiful flowers and you have captured them so well! I enjoy taking photos of flowers too when I get the chance.
The flowers are beautiful and it is so sad there time to bloom is limited like so many summer flowers. Your quotes are as usual so thought provoking.
What a great photo prompt. We have hydrangeas in our yard that are beautiful when blooming. And they smell amazing too!
Evanescent is such a beautiful word, and these photos are just as beautiful.
Your description resonates. Flowers do provide quite a few analogies to life, it’s true!
Those flowers are absolutely beautiful. I would love to have a garden with some beautiful and colorful flowers in my yard, but we’re not allowed to, where we live 🙁
I like the direction that you took with this prompt and the photos of your flowers are just gorgeous. I feel that most of life is really evanescent and the more we understand that and live in the moment, the happier we will be.
Wow! I’ve never heard anyone describe flowers like this. Beautifully described. Will make me pay more attention to my surroundings and appreciate what I see growing everywhere.
I love your choice of flower for symbolizing evanescence. I’d love to plant some in my backyard as a reminder of practicing mindfulness in my life. I think that mindfulness is key in overcoming the anxiety that everything is short lived. When you make an effort to really live in the present, each second can feel like an eternity and at the same time you are more mentally ready to let go of it and move on to the next moment in time.
There are so many ways to interpret the word “evanescent.” I loved how you used a flower to describe the word. I would probably use the word to define happiness from material possessions. The happiness is just short lived, and temporary.
Those are beautiful flowers! I haven’t ever thought of evanescent before – but I think I would also choose flowers, perhaps day lilies that are only here for a day before they drop off, or my lilacs which only last for a very short time.
This is my first time hearing of widows tears but the fact that they bloom in the morning and die by night reminds us how short life is. Another great message x
I love the flowers! the color is fab. You are really good photographer:)
Such beautiful photos, I especially love the colour! And the interpretation is wonderful.
The widow’s tears are a beautiful flower. I am a Floral Designer and I know quite a lot about flowers. It is true they don’t live long but the time they are blossoming are beautiful to look at.
I love your interpretation of ‘evanescent’. I love these purple flowers as well. I sometimes have days when I just roam around my yard around this time of year and do nothing but admire the blooming flowers!
The flower has a really nice shade and is really beautiful. They just remind us how the world is natural beautiful on its own.
Wow those flowers near your window are really pretty. I always enjoy the beautiful quotes you put in your blog. Inspiring.
I have nothing much to say. It’s just the flowers are really beautiful!
These flowers are really beautiful! Great photos with great focus x
The best thing about these short-lived ephemeral plants is when they bloom, they bloom to the fullest. And it is quite short that you should cherish the time they show their beauty!
These are such beautiful flowers and they definitely have a lot to do with the photography theme you mentioned. I love photos of nature and flowers like these make such great subjects.
The flowers are really pretty. This sounds like a tough word to photograph for because it is more of a state of being to me.
AMAZING!!! you make the colors of the petals of those flowers sing with such vibrancy and flare.