Wildflower Trail, Diamond Valley Lake, Riverside County, CA, 3/17/2017
In April of 1891, the Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde wrote in a letter: “A work of art is useless as a flower is useless. A flower blossoms for its own joy. We gain a moment of joy by looking at it”. In late winter of 2017, I felt tremendous joy while exploring the wildflower-covered hills by Diamond Valley Lake in California’s Riverside County. Heavy rains during the previous months had brought about a rare super bloom throughout Southern California. This particular dell along Wildflower Trail in the Domenigoni Mountains was kaleidoscopic, the highlight of my visit. The orange blossoms are California poppies (Eschscholzia californica), the state flower. The yellow blooms are California goldfields (Lasthenia californica). The more distant splashes of purple are wild Canterbury bells (Phacelia minor). Reflecting on Wilde’s ideas, I conclude that if a flower gives us a moment of joy, and a photograph or work of art can spread that joy, they are not entirely useless.
