In a previous post, I lashed out at critics who cautioned me to “slow down and smell the roses.”  My retort:  “Speed up and see what you’re missing.”

But that was before the wild roses burst into bloom.  Drive into the country in early June and you’ll find the roadside bushes exploding with clusters of white flowers.  A sweet fragrance wafts along the breeze.  In upstate New York, this is the smell of early summer.

The roadside bushes are Rosa Multiflora or Ramblers Rose, and they grow wild throughout the state.  I walked up to one of these bushes and admired the flowers’ tiny white petals and yellow stamens.  Then I took a deep sniff.

Continue reading “Don’t Tell Me to Stop and Smell the (Wild) Roses” →