A Moment Of Beauty And Wonder.

My most vivid memory of beauty from childhood is from the early 1950’s, when I was three or four years old, walking through the vast and beautiful Como Park Conservatory in St. Paul, Minnesota with family. I was almost overwhelmed by the heady fragrance of greenery, the surprising colors of the flowers, the tinkling of little waterfalls built into the displays, pitying the trapped birds chirping overhead. I was given a coin, told to make a wish, and to toss it into the water well of a little grotto. I did so with all my heart, “I wish that everyone everywhere would be happy.” I have not changed. But, even then I knew that wishing would not make it so, and I wondered how the world worked.

Annmarie Throckmorton at Como Park in Saint Paul, Minnesota USA, age 4.

Como Park Conservatory in St. Paul, Minnesota-open source photograph-1, 2006.

Como Park Conservatory in St. Paul, Minnesota—open source photograph-2, 2006