Plum Blossoms

     In honor of the first day of spring, here is a blossoming plum tree I photographed in Shaoxing a couple weeks ago.  Week after week around the Chinese New Year season last year in Shenzhen, I walked by the artificial blooming plum trees that decorated the entrance to our apartment complex.  So I was thrilled to finally see the real thing.
     Actually I have seen plum blossoms many times before, white ones on the wild plum trees around Walnut Grove where I grew up (the setting of On the Banks of Plum Creek, of course!)  Their fragrance is one of my favorites.
     Pink plum blossoms like those in the photo are often used for Chinese New Year, which is also called Spring Festival.  They are very symbolic, as so many elements of nature are for the Chinese:  they represent hope and rebirth.
     Plum blossoms are also considered one of the "four gentleman", or men of virtue, in Chinese culture, along with orchids, bamboo and chrysanthemums.  Plum blossoms represent strength and endurance, because they are one of the first flowers to bloom in the spring, often while snow is still on the ground.  The other virtues represented are purity (orchid), uprightness (bamboo) and humility (chrysanthemum).
     Plum blossoms have been the subject of many Chinese poems and paintings since ancient times.  They are considered by many to be the national flower of China.