Happy Blogger's Day

Most people give roses on Valentines Day, Birthdays, Anniversaries, Mothers Day and now I’d like to start a new tradition -- Bloggers Day.

Whether you are a blogger or a reader of blogs, today is a special day of gratitude.

Gratitude starts with thanking God for the day. When we wake up with gratitude, our whole day is full of love. It’s like God has given us a bouquet of roses. The birds sing louder, the trees stand taller, the sun shines brighter and the flowers are more fragrant.

There was a time when I didn’t like receiving roses because they died so quickly, but over the years I have discovered that it’s not about the flowers. It’s about the gesture and the love in which roses are given -- and that lasts forever.

Why let the day be a bed of thorns when we can bask in the fragrance of the day. I am giving you all a bouquet of your own flowers. These are from my heart. Let them be the fragrance that carries you through your day.

I appreciate all of your stimulating, insightful, profound and compassionate comments. Bloggers are a tight knit family and we share a great deal of our lives with each other. In some cases, more than with our spouses, family and friends.

I just want you all to know that your presence is deeply felt here. You are my roses and you truly make my heart bloom. Thank you for keeping this energy alive with your vital input and love.

Here are a few facts about roses that you may not have known.

• Every flower has a hidden meaning known as the flower language. The flower language covers every flower and roses contain the most well known of all statements made in the flower language.
• Red roses are the universal symbol of love and passion.
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  Red roses by themselves symbolizes love and white roses affection, the meaning of red and white roses combined however are unity and eternal friendship.
• A black rose is a symbol for death and could be misinterpreted as a threat by some one who knows and believes in the meaning of roses.
• An orange symbolizes enthusiasm and eagerness.
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  A peach rose symbolizes success.
• A blue rose symbolizes mystery.
• A pink rose symbolizes elegance but can also be appreciation and sympathy.
• A green rose symbolizes fertility and fruitfulness.
• A yellow rose symbolizes caring.
• The world's oldest living rose is 1,000 years old and continues to flourish on the wall of the Hildesheim Cathedral of Germany.
• Romans believed white roses grew where the tears of Venus fell as she mourned the loss of her beloved Adonis. Myth also has it that Venus' son Cupid accidentally shot arrows into the rose garden when a bee stung him, and it was the "sting" of the arrows that caused the roses to grow thorns. When Venus walked through the garden and pricked her foot on a thorn, it was the droplets of her blood which turned the roses red.
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  In an Arabic legend, all roses were originally white until one night when the nightingale met a beautiful white rose and fell in love. At this stage nightingales were not known for their melodious song — they merely croaked and chirped like any other bird. But now the nightingale's love was so intense that he was inspired to sing for the first time. Eventually his love was such that he pressed himself to the flower and the thorns pierced his heart, coloring the rose red forever.
• While the rose may bear no fruit, the rose hips (the part left on the plant after a rose is done blooming) contain more Vitamin C than almost any other fruit or vegetable.
• It was in the seventeenth century that French explorer Samuel deChamplain brought the first cultivated roses to North America.
• Roses are truly ageless. Recently, archaeologists discovered the fossilized remains of wild roses over 40 million years old.
• According to Greek Mythology, Aphrodite gave the rose its name. Ancient Greeks used roses to accessorize. On festive occasions they would adorn themselves with garlands of roses, and splash themselves with rose-scented oil.
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  Napoleon's wife Josephine so adored roses, she grew more than 250 varieties.
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• It is said that Cleopatra knew full well the seductive power of roses. When she entertained Mark Antony on her barge, Cleopatra made sure he was surrounded by the fragrance and extravagance of the flower. She had the banquet tables scattered with roses, the floors covered 18 inches deep in petals, the couches lined with rose-filled mattresses, and rose-filled net bags were used as cushions for the two lovers.
• In Islam, the rose signifies the blood of Mohammed and his two sons.
• In Christianity, the red rose is symbolic of the blood of Christ and a symbol of martyrdom, charity, the passion and resurrection. The white rose is linked to the Virgin Mary — the rose without thorns.
• Roses are truly ageless. Recently, archaeologists discovered the fossilized remains of wild roses over 34 million years old.