Like the Sparkling of Stars

The path was damp after the rain that had pounded against the side panels of the dormitory. The gurgling stream was now a raging current of muddy brown water, forcing its way through the campus, taking clinging twigs and falling bank sides with it.
The torrent could be heard all over campus.

Sunlight filtered through the overhead canopy, dappling the forest floor in a warm glow that helped the soaked grass begin to dry. As a light wind suddenly picked up, the treetops began to sway as if in slow motion, the clashing of their vegetation like the beating of the rain from the night before.
The bright rays began to shift with the trees’ motion, the huge branched peaks cutting off possible routs for the light to travel. As the beams of yellow and gold moved over the ground, their tips fell upon a cluster of green vegetation by the raging river’s bank. Something like the glittering of stars twinkling atop the healthy leaves caught my eye. Beams of sunlight were reflected from the raindrops; making the ground sparkle like a million silver stars were attached to the earth’s surface rather than the endless sky above.
The scene was amazing.
I couldn’t remember seeing the night sky so well portrayed on the ground.

Images taken by Mizuni on the campus of Eastern University. Graphics by Mizuni.

A Flowering Timeline

While walking hastily back to my dorm, I noticed for the first time that there were flowerbeds positioned beside the sidewalk. They weren't the easiest to see with the tilted pine trees bending towards the road, grabbing more of my attention. I should have noticed the flowers sooner, since their golden color was the brightest along the sidewalk.

The flowers were painted gold with petals falling slightly down and then swooping back up. The ends looked like they were cut or nicked to make three jagged points. The reason for the detail escaped me.
The bulb of the blossom was dominant, taking up most of the bloomed top. It was also a bright golden yellow, which when hit perfectly by the sun seemed to glow. The stem connected underneath and faded from green to a brownish grey, but from it thriving pointed leaves sprouted.
Among the matured blossom were was also one browning, with petals missing and its stem becoming stiff and weak. The last of the golden fingers surrounding the browned bulb were shriveled.

Yet among the fully-grown and the crumbling blossoms a bud was just beginning to unfold.
There I saw the birth, the matured, and the death; the life of the flowerbed.

Images taken by Mizuni on the campus of Eastern University. Graphics by Mizuni.