Morning Glory and other childhood flowers

The climber, Morning Glory used to line the fence at Serangoon Garden Primary  South School which separated the school compound from Tavistock Avenue. One end of the avenue (towards Ang Mo Kio) was a kampung. My classmate, Steven Spencer used to point at the fence where he went through to take a shortcut and where he claimed he was chased by a bull. It was a great story in those days. Still is now, for me.

THIS is the most familiar flower of my childhood. In primary school, this was the name of the first flower we studied. I love the colour of this flower -- a milky purple (at least those which were commonly found in the area where I used to lived). I love its trumpet shape too. After that, I think the next most common flower our teachers pointed out to us was the Lily.

Oh yes, there were also those gorgeous Flame of the Forests.

Flame of the Forest. They are just too much to handle with my pencil colours.

Where have they all gone. Flame of the Forests were once the best eye candy I could ever get -- especially when the entire road was lined with the trees. A sea of bright orange-red on wide spreading branches that grew from a stout trunk, conveying such strength, courage and beauty. The trunks, with scaly barks, have such character. And when the flowers withered, they fell to the roadside with such grandeur.

And there were the Yellow Cassias -- clusters of the most cheerful yellow. There were many lining Brockhampton Drive where I used to live. I remember my sis in law had a brooch that was in the form of a sprig of flowers from this tree. I had a blue dress made from cheese cloth which I thought went so well with the brooch. She gave it to me and it was one of my favourite brooches. After the toil up the hill that was Chartwell Drive, it was a great pleasure to see the Yellow Cassias -- and the thought of lunch or dinner waiting at the table. If mum cooked her famous stewed chicken and chestnuts, that would complete my day -- with a flourish.

And of course, the hibiscus. Almost every house I knew during my childhood has a hibiscus plant in the garden. And for parts of the flowers (Science lessons), which flower did we use but the hibiscus!