why poppies?

i’ve never been much of a flower person. they’ve always seemed too perfect and rigid to me.

but California poppies are different. they’re wild, vibrant, and resilient.

When I moved to San Francisco in 2017, it didn’t take long for it to feel like home. Pre-California, I spent my “growing-up” years Oklahoma, started my career in Chicago, and lived a bit of life in Seattle.

The rhythms, diversity, and nuances of cities are what make them interesting. Walking down a city street twice isn’t predictable because the people who pass through it are ever changing the experience. 

San Francisco is a special place where you can feel the parallels between the energy of the city and the ocean. Both are full of their own natural organic patterns and yet have notable elements of unpredictability. I was driving along the coast with intent to gawk at the ocean when I noticed the charm of California poppies. They were numerous and bold. Their bright orange flappy petals popped against the greenish earthy tones of the California coastal hills. Since then, I’ve seen poppies in unexpected places - standing solo in a bed of grass or along a gas station sidewalk. In the least manicured places, poppies show up with their unapologetic sass. To me, they will always represent the charm of being free to grow organically, and the unanticipated unmatched beauty that makes life worthwhile. 

It’s worth mentioning that aside from what poppies represent to me, they symbolize different things depending on place and culture. A quick Google search will turn up: imagination, sleep, experimentation, remembrance, love, and even death. These multiple meanings make poppies even more special to me because they embody the spirit of being many different things to different people at the same time. 

That’s why poppies.