There are still some unresolved seasonal dilemmas I have to cope with living in South Florida. It’s Thanksgiving in the US this week and I need a harvest themed arrangement with berries and fall color. No funky tropicals, just some fall color. The hunt was on!
After rooting around in the garden I realized a little compromise was required. Fall color is not found in deciduous trees here, but other plants – and berries we have. The basket was located and snipping began.
A closer view:
The fall color compromise is displayed in its full glory. The rusty red Aechmea rubens flower. Yellow flowers are Beach Sunflowers (Helianthus debilis). Purple berries are from the Beautyberry (Calliocarpa americana).
Another view:
Berries are from the Gumbo Limbo (Bursea simaruba) you can’t get much more tropical than that. The (I use the term loosely) fall leaves are from a Raggedy Ann Copperleaf (Acalphya wilkesiana)
White filler flowers are Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa) my fall favorite.
I think my Thanksgiving arrangement has been cobbled together without tropical vibes. I can go forth and thaw my turkey and make cranberry relish in peace now. Happy Thanksgiving to my American counterparts.
In the United States, Thanksgiving is about expressing gratitude and thanking those who have helped us. Some of you know I have been arguing with Inflammatory Breast Cancer for the past four years and it is truly difficult for me to express my gratitude for having my blog community as an escape from the grind of the process. I detest the warrior/battle ethos. And pink for the most part.
Here is a link for more info. There are groups in the UK, Canada and Australia https://theibcnetwork.org/
So, Thank You.
And thanks to Cathy for hosting this sanity saving meme! (my sanity) Follow the link to her blog to see other vases. RamblingintheGarden
The Shrub Queen 
Very autumnal, I’d say mission accomplished! For the holiday, I like to focus on the gathering and gratitude, with the feast being secondary, though I love me some nice crispy turkey. đ Grateful for your continued presence here in the blogosphere, A! đ
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Grateful for Dana Farber!
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đđź đ
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I was unaware of your cancer diagnosis. I am very sorry to read about it now.
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Thanks Tony
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I like the concept you have shared with us, and the arrangement is a delight, so keep on arranging and sharing. We all need to focus on living and loving. Happy Thanksgiving.
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Thanks
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Sorry to hear you are battling illness Amelia – thank you for feeling comfortable sharing it with us … we are all alongside you â¤ď¸Your arrangement really does shout ‘Harvest!’, with the basket bringing all the components together. How does Thanksgiving compare with Christmas in the US, in terms of importance and efforts, etc?
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Thanks Cathy. I used to think Thanksgiving and Christmas were too close together.. Christmas is probably a bigger event but there is a lot of cooking involved with both.
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Yes, they are really close together – here in the UK churches traditionally celebrate a harvest festival, when people bring in produce and it is distributed to those in need, but it is usually in September and these days it is mostly packaged and tinned stuff, which is not all the same, is it? đ
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The Harvest festival is a great idea, the lines for the food bank here astound me. Thanksgiving is a bit gluttonous.
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Yes, that’s a good point, Amelia, although far be it from me to suggest Americans are gluttonous! đ
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I don’t have much in the way of fall color either but I think you managed a seasonally appropriate arrangement very well, Amelia. Like you, I also appreciate the sanity-saving opportunity to share our love of our gardens and flowers.
https://krispgarden.blogspot.com/
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Thanks, Kris. Sanity intact so far.
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I am so sorry to hear about your cancer. I was diagnosed 8 years ago, and my husband was treated right before our move. I know how difficult it is to deal with it. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers. My garden was not cared for during my recovery, but it did its job, producing lots of flowers and providing an escape, as well as enough close-up photos to keep my blog going.
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I was diagnosed four years ago, cautiously optimistic now! Would have been so much easier if I had been in Houston (MDA has a IBC Clinic) Hope you both are doing well, it is a trial for sure.
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We had excellent care at MDA. So far, we are well, and my husband is doing his follow-ups at Penn in Philly, and I’m doing the survivorship(I hate that word) also there. That is one of the reasons we were staying in an apartment, and my plants lived in a closet. I hope all goes well and you are over the hump.
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Penn is awesome!! I have a very rare cancer and ended up at Dana Farber. Thats why I go to Boston. The care locally is pfft. I have not heard that word!? But agree. The doctors seem compelled to pickle me in chemo.
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Treatment is tough and exhausting.
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Well I have been doing it since May 22 I think it’s gone. I am on break until I go to DFCI in January
There’s got to be something we are doing or eating that causes it. Best wishes to your husband..
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I have been wondering that. Both of us are very healthy and with no family history. Houston has all those refineries and hid pollution information for years, but who knows. I feel really bad for Tatiana Kennedy, she is so young.
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I’m disturbed by the casual use of hormone disruptors in lawn chemicals.. think of the vast acreage of that stuff around us. I finally read about TK. So awful. This cancer I have is pretty rare and tends to affect younger women. I meet a lot of them through social media. One really broke me lately. Diagnosis at 38 treated at MDA. Came roaring back at 39 she passed in two months. Not uncommon for IBC.
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I had many women in their 30s in my radiation group. Statistically, there shouldn’t have been that many, and most were in their 30s. I’m trying to get my girls checked, but the screening rules won’t allow women in their 30s. I do not have the gene, but better to be safe.
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My gene is melanoma which is common with this cancer. Were you working with Wendy Woodward?
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No, her name is not familiar. I had estrogen positive, different from yours, and more common. My age was a plus for me, but the young women in my group did not enjoy having their estrogen stopped and they also got the full treatment with chemo and everything else to prevent future occurrence. Many were concerned about being able to have children.
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I didn’t get totally off easy, as the estrogen blocker activated arthritis. All my joints hurt, and I had to get a new hip. All this in the middle of our move across the country. But, things are settling down and I am planning a smaller garden.
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Good grief. I hope your hip feels better. My husband calls things like that medical oh, by the ways. You won’t have estrogen or pain free joints! I have cataracts and neuropathy!
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I am not enjoying the aging process…at all. đ
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I don’t think it is a compromise at all Amelia⌠it looks like a wonderful autumn basket of harvest goodies – even if all the berries are not edible! LOL! The sunflowers are a perfect finishing touch. đ I didn’t realize you are still struggling with breast cancer Amelia – I remember you mentioned it when you joined in a zoom meeting we had with Cathy a couple of years ago. Wishing you heaps of strength and sending you a big hug. đ¤ Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving!
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Thanks Cathy. Actually the berries are edible if you really want to eat them is another question!
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