This is a fresh photo taken today. The light hit these flower petals at just the right angle to make them sparkle. They reminded me of sugar flowers like one might find on a birthday cake.

The first time I discovered sugar decorations was at age 4. We went to visit people I didn't know very well on Christmas day. The only other kids there were older than me, and a little bit strange. I spent most of the day scrunched up in a corner reading my Alice in Wonderland book, feeling nervous and out of place. On a brief foray into the basement, I discovered something amazing - a skating rink with ice made of blue jello, complete with sugar penguin skaters. Blue jello... who even knew that such a thing existed? And the penguins just glistened as the dim basement potlights illuminated the sugar crystals. All night I looked forward to eating this magical creation. I had spent the whole day wanting to go home, and now I was suddenly afraid that we would have to leave early, before I could taste the blue jello.

The time to eat it came soon enough, and I made two important discoveries: #1. Blue jello is disgusting. #2. Eating a sugar penguin is somewhat like eating sand (I was an authority on such matters at age 4). The pain of disappointment was enough to make me burst into tears right there, in my little folding chair at a little folding table in a strange person's kitchen. All of the adults present rushed over to find out what was wrong, but I couldn't quite articulate it in words. That sort of thing still happens from time to time.