When I was little my grandmother and my mom used to sing me this little song that goes something like this:
I'm a lonely little petunia in an onion patch,
An onion patch,
An onion patch.
I'm a lonely little petunia in an onion patch,
Oh, won't you come and play with me
Boo hoo,
boo hoo,
The airs so strong it takes my breath away
I'm a lonely little petunia in an onion patch,
An onion patch,
An onion patch.
I'm a lonely little petunia in an onion patch,
Oh, won't you come and play with me.
And when I was little I knew what petunia's were of course. My mom planted them frequently in a little spot by a spruce tree in our front yard. Not much else grows in New Mexico. Anyway, I used to imagine this little fushia colored petunia alone in the field of plant--as a child I imagined a potato field because I don't think I knew what an onion was. When I got older, no one sang the song to me and I forgot about it.
Untill today....
When I was driving through town and I started singing it to Ralphie. As I got to the part: "the air's so strong it takes my breath away", I had to pause and go, "oooooooh!" Because for the first time in my entire life--all almost 24 years--I had never understood what it meant or why the air was strong and taking its breath away.
So there you have it. It's funny how things you didn't understand as a child and don't think about for years don't make sense to you until you are an adult!
(Check out that picture! It really IS a lonely petunia in an onion patch!)
