Persica and Umbrosa d’Veronica

Persica

Persica was a little shy about stepping into the formal garden.  Her blue bonnet seemed so faded and small compared to the large, fancy, dark purple bonnet she had seen in Umbrosa’s picture.  Persica was a brave girl, however, and dared not shame her family by withering in the face of an opportunity like this.  Persica felt, as her mother was always saying in her country way, like ” going to seed” right there.  She wanted to fade away and not be heard of until next year at this time, but that would not do.  She had come a long way to get here.  With a deep breath, she daintily lifted her long, modest petticoats off the rich country dirt scattered about the plain clay coach that had transported her to her cousin Umbrosa’s home in the city and stepped out into a perfectly manicured yard.

Persica d’Veronica with her many brothers and sisters in the background

Persica had been told that she would find her cousin Umbrosa in the “blue garden,” as the keepers of the house referred to it.  Persica unfolded the neat letter for the hundredth time and looked at the finely created picture drawing of Umbrosa’s home and gardens, and of Umbrosa herself.  Umbrosa was quite fancy.  Persica made her way along the perfectly laid stone pathway leading to Umbrosa, trying not to allow her spindly limbs to shake as she went.  Everything her mother had ever told her about Umbrosa went through her mind.  “You and Umbrosa are cousins.  You can’t be so very different from each other now, can you?  Now Persica, do not feel inferior in their fine garden.  After all, ’twas you who came along first, and you have both been raised and cultivated right at home, not potted up in some large, crowded facility with 1000 other specimens.  You should get along splendidly.  Yes, you may have only the paler and older colors in your color box, whereas Umbrosa has the newer, richer, more fashionable shades, but you both have been nurtured with the utmost care and love a mother could give, right in your own gardens, and I’m sure your nature observations are every bit as keen as hers.  You’ll see.”

Umbrosa

Umbrosa looked more like a ballerina than one of the Veronicas as she ambled across the smooth, hand-picked stones that surrounded her spot in the blue garden.  Her manners were impeccable and she had been carefully taught to fit into any garden, not just the blue one.  She had been raised to complement the finest of families, and yet here she was nervous about meeting her country cousin, Persica.  Persica was older than she was and probably knew much more about the ways of life.  Umbrosa’s mother had told her vivid stories of Persica being allowed to run free in the farmer’s meadows and stroll alongside pathways and lanes leading to many a country inn.  Persica had been to nearly every home in her part of the country.  Umbrosa, on the other hand, was considered well bred, and she had been placed only in the most suitable gardens and conservatories, and that after much scrutinizing by those in charge of her.  Still, as Umbrosa’s mother pointed out in her refined voice, “Persica is the offspring of my own sister.”  She assured Umbrosa that Persica would have been raised a lady, despite her country freedoms.

Umbrosa d’Veronica and her little sister

The Meeting

Persica was so stunned, she stopped dead still on the ornate walkway.  She would never have needed that picture drawing to spot her lovely cousin Umbrosa.  There stood Umbrosa, easily identifiable, looking much like herself, and yet different.  Persica smiled.  Umbrosa smiled back.  Instantly, any possible strain or stress between them vanished.  Persica walked as if on air to meet Umbrosa, whose own steps became even more dance-like as she moved beyond the larger rocks to meet her cousin.

They talked and they talked and they talked. 

“Yes, me too, I love nature!” cried Umbrosa.  “We have studied the cardinal extensively.  And the robin!  We’ve actually learned of all the city birds.  I can pick them out by merely hearing their beautiful songs.”

“Would you believe we have had the good fortune to see even owls and hawks from our beds?”  said Persica, almost in a whisper as she recalled the events to her cousin.  “Oh, the poor creatures scrambling to get away from them!  Well, anyway, we studied them too.”

The visit went on and on.  They snacked on fresh air and earth’s rich soil, and all the other beatiful gifts from God that feed the plants and animals alike.  They found that even though they had been raised in different gardens by different people with different tools, the intentions and notions which had driven their raising had been quite the same.  Both of their lives had been filled with love and care from mothers who wanted them to be beautiful creatures inside and out.  Nature study had been very important in both their homes. 

Persica and Umbrosa had much more in common than not.  It was the start of a long and beautiful friendship.

Note

I hope you enjoyed this little story I made up, about homeschooled girls in a parallel universe, inspired by flowers in my yard and the joys of a Charlotte Mason education.  The Veronica persica grows wild here.  The Veronica umbrosa was purchased from a nursery.  They look a lot alike. 

Lynn