Germanely Geranium

“If these are the achievements of man, give me the achievements of geraniums.” -John Beverley Nichols, English writer

Languishing on my Covid sickbed in 2022, feeling abysmal, flattened by life, a recent betrayal and the raging virus, I had strength only to gaze out the window, and at the row of potted geraniums blooming on my windowsill.

One morning, I’d had enough energy to read a meditation by Richard Rohr, a progressive and controversial Franciscan priest whom I follow. His suggested practice for the day was this: Deeply breathe in, repeating any name of God that is dear to you. The words I whispered were, “Geranium, geranium, geranium.” Nothing felt holier in that moment.

That prayer, if you will, is still precious to me; an incantation, my own magic potion, a spell for the moment. Of course I knew the flowers had no inherent power to heal me or to act in any way whatsoever. I think they were simply telling me to survive.

“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.” ~Rumi

There is something about geraniums that has held me in its thrall for decades. My adopted Alaskan grandmother kept her beloved red geraniums in a box outside her kitchen window in summer, then overwintered them inside. To this day I lovingly associate the sight and scent of geraniums with Gramma Ives.

Now I do the same here in England.

Sometimes called “the balcony beauty,” geraniums symbolize friendship, good health, and protection. In Victorian floriography, they conveyed sentiments of comfort and domestic harmony, often sent to wish someone well or to express cheer after hardship.

Actually, the red houseplant type of geranium isn’t a true geranium at all but a Pelargonium. “Real” geraniums are mounding perennials that bloom lavender, pink, white or purplish-blue; never red. They’re often called “hardy geraniums” or “cranesbills” because of their beak-shaped seed pods:

In Greek ‘geranos’ means crane and ‘pelargos’ means stork… thus the Geranium is the cranes bill and the Pelargonium the storks bill. The two are close relatives that share similar appearances and scents. Common usage has lumped them all in together.

^ Can you smell those distinctive furry leaves?

“Long experience has taught me that people who do not like geraniums have something morally unsound about them. Sooner or later you will find them out; you will discover that they drink, or steal books, or speak sharply to cats. Never trust a man or a woman who is not passionately devoted to geraniums.” -John Beverley Nichols, English writer

Please know, dear readers, that I am not trying to pretend everything is OK when it isn’t. I am deeply, profoundly troubled by the state of US and global affairs. I am only trying to counterbalance the bad with the good in however small and humble ways that I can, because I still believe in the power of goodness.

“The amount of good things in your life depends on your ability to notice them.” ~Unknown