The Pink Lady's Slipper

On the first sunny day after many stormy ones, I happened upon a fertile garden of fairy-like flowers. Pink lady's slippers bloomed in a boggy glade dotted with mounds of emerald moss. The breeze bobbled their veined blooms, puffed up like small balloons.


Just now, I read that lady's slippers are orchids in the genus Cypripedium, a word derived from Greek (Kypris or Venus and pedilon or shoe or little foot). Also known as American Valerian, pink lady's slippers have been used as sedatives to treat mood disorders and depression.

They certainly lightened my mood today, even though they honestly don't look much like slippers to me.