Aww, what a sweet, heartwarming story of your legacy plants. I have a big ole' carnosa, too. I'm already teaching my young grandson to love this plant. I hope he takes mine someday and does it the honor you did your grandma's beloved plant. Congrats on your blooms. Your grandma is smiling, for sure.

I'm betting your grandma has something to do with those blooms! I truly believe our passed loved ones find ways to say "howdy-do" to us, and this is the perfect way for her to do that - through a plant from her plant! How cool is that?! Looks like one happy plant, BTW.

Denise in Omaha

This brought tears to my eyes! I thought exactly the same way Denise in Omaha did, it is your grandma or her essence or something.

You got it right, JCP... Little story... My MIL passed away the end of 1998. Back then, I was just starting to really embrace the idea that our loved ones can communicate from the great beyond. I had recently read in one of Ann Lander's columns (or perhaps it was her sister's, Dear Abby...) about "pennies from heaven." So many great stories!! But I thought, "how would I ever know if the pennies I found were from heaven?" Why? Because my husband is - and always has been - a change shedder. What I mean by that is that where-ever he seems to go, you can find change hither and dither. Down in our basement, AKA his "man cave", it's EVERYwhere...

So back to his mom passing away. Shortly thereafter, I started finding wheat pennies. Wheat pennies aren't that common anymore, yet I was finding them left and right! I have a bag-full of wheat pennies I've found over the years since she passed. I found a lot of them early on. Now I find them occasionally, seems like when I need a little "hey, it's going to be ok" kind of reassurance. It makes my heart soar every time I find one! I could tell you other stories that would give you goosebumps, but I find the wheat pennies the most mildly charming!

Denise in Omaha

Carnosa's my most sentimental plant, too. I call her Nikki after my best friend who died in a car accident the summer before senior year in high school. I've given cuttings to some close friends that were close to Nikki as well. My friend Emily sent me a picture last Friday of her plant I gave her a couple years ago, and hers is going to bloom for the very first time, whereas mine has never bloomed lol. Emily's house is where we all meet every so often and eat and catch up with one another, so I think it's Nikki saying hello to all of us the next time we're all there. :)

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Thanks for the great stories, guys.

Update pics...

Oohh, this one looks like it's about to pop.

Also, a new peduncle

Wow! Thanks for posting this! I sure believe our loved ones stay connected to us through our plants. Please post a picture when it opens!

Progress pics

This is the first one to open. What are those droplets on the blooms?

Yeap, that's the nectar. Yum! :)

Congrats on the blooms! That is indeed nectar on the flowers. I think it makes the flowers more magical, if that's possible.

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Tasty, too. ;P

Glad to see your grandmother's carnosa in bloom! My first Hoya was, similarly, from a cutting from my mom's plant, which she got from her mom's plant, that grew in their kitchen as she was growing up. When my oma died, I took a bunch of cuttings from my carnosa and was able to give the baby plants to all her kids at the funeral. We also had pictures of the blooms on the memory books and programs. Well, anyway, for me, the best memento of a loved one is a plant. :) I similarly have a Christmas cactus from my paternal grandmother, who was also a green thumb. They may not be the rarest plants, but they are the most precious.

It's like Mike D., once said: "Plants can be truly healing creatures if we let them".

Brad AKA Moonwolf

True say.