Dear Reader:

How many gifts can you receive that have a star within a moon? To me that is what makes the moon flower blossom so spectacular…no matter how many times I watch this gorgeous bloom unfold…the beauty of the star forming the outline of the moon flower blossom sends chills down my back. A two-for one-present!

After reading several articles on the moon flower botanists explain that this unique flower has evolved over thousands of years to adapt to the night and not the day. One excerpt says:

“These plants have evolved over millions of years to be timed with the night/day cycle to open only in the night. They do this because night-flying insects mostly pollinate them. One such insect is the hawk moth. The flowers are sensitive to small changes in light so that they are open when these insects are out in the evening.”

I discovered that there are all kinds of hawk moths…including the hummingbird moth (dressed in black for his special appearance) who “attacked” my first moon flower bloom just as I was taking its picture…starling me to the point that I almost dropped my iPhone.

It is just nature’s way of pollinating…of keeping the species alive. Every time I learn a small detail about another creation of God I marvel at how any of us can doubt God’s existence. He has worked out, in precise detail, everything every creature or living organism in the universe needs to stay alive.

A few other people experienced the same thing I did (seeing a hawk moth pollinate a moon flower blossom…some to the point that they set up special night cameras to do so…)-some of these flying creatures are quite pretty unlike my black one…pink with varied colors. (Though from the inside my moth might have had prettier designs too…since my camera just caught its back)

Look at how long its tongue is…obviously this part of nature has evolved too for the pollination to be successful….I love this bit of trivia about an important observation Charles Darwin discovered and was later proven correct.

“Hawk moths have the world’s longest tongues of any other moth or butterfly (some up to 14 inches long). Charles Darwin knew of the star orchids  from Madagascar that had nectar spurs over a foot in length. Darwin was ridiculed by other scientists of his day for predicting that these orchids would be pollinated by hawk moths. After his death, hawk moths with tongues long enough to sip of the nectar produced by the star orchids were discovered on the island of Madagascar.”

All of this is why the picture of my moon flower blossom (still in bloom as the sun came up last week)…is probably the most special picture of all. It doesn’t happen often in nature that designed habits change… so when they do…we understand the rarity of such a sighting.

I have one other bud that will bloom soon (but hopefully not tonight) because I will be gone to Mt. Pleasant to keep Eva Cate and Jakie for John to take Mandy out for her birthday. Then Sunday the family is coming over for a get-together and lunch in Mandy’s honor.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful long Labor Day Weekend! Enjoy it to the fullest. One never knows what mystery of life might appear.

So until tomorrow…this blessing for one and all.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh