The Desert Blooms After the Rains

This African violet came to my household last February, a gift from one of the writers' group members. I told her at the time that she was consigning the poor thing to almost certain death. Over the years the cat and I have managed to kill several cacti, baskets of peace lillies, a dieffenbachia, five unlucky bamboo stalks, and even a hoya that was marketed to me as "indestructible." Plants under my tender care and ministration do much better if they fend for themselves outside.

This plucky thing put out flowers for the first time after I noticed the "potting medium" the plant was in had in fact become a "potting brick" and I left it under a running tap for fifteen minutes.