In my family tree, I have relatives who would look at this post, look at me and say “Pride and envy are each one of the seven deadly sins.”  But today, I’m thinking that local pride is better for me than  the aloe envy I was feeling.

This photograph comes from June, in a local garden, of a Sempervivum flower.  Maybe that will be more familiar to most readers as ”hens-and-chicks,” a short, compact succulent whose small “chick” rosettes cluster next to the larger “hen” rosettes.  The reason this photograph comes up now is swell of pride I felt when I realized this plant was purchased at the Gardens this spring. 

To a certain extent that pride is totally irrational: I no more caused the plant to bloom than I started it growing.  But it was confirmation that all the effort that goes into a plant sale is worth it.  All the preparation, all the volunteer work hours, all the hustling, bustling, sweat and effort pays off because people have more beautiful gardens, new plants blooming or a new connection to the natural world. 

And that led me to think the cure for “aloe envy,” “Pacific Northwest envy,” or any “wetter, warmer climate envy” is to really look at the beauty and the marvels around you.  I may feel a need to grab some more marvels in September at the the Fall Plant and Bulb Sale, I may invest some time into learning how good Rocky Mountain Gardening can be, but I need no artifical-aloe-enhancement to be enchanted and exuberant over our landscapes.