Jude the Obscure

Have you ever come across a situation, when you are in a group of people, talking and discussing about things, everyone looking very calm and relax and the people seemed comfortable being themselves with bits of laughter in between and at some moments a short silence as if pondering and musing over certain points, and then Jude the Obscure walked through the door, joined in the conversation and suddenly, you noticed that the mood amongst those present mellowed as Jude topped the conversation with his opinions. The happy tone from the earlier conversation suddenly diffused and thinned out. There is a sense of discomfort in the air and you felt it and sensed that the others are not feeling at ease since Jude's arrival.

You can see that Jude is knowledgeable like a walking encyclopedia. Talk like an encyclopedia and argue like an encyclopedia. You try to follow his thoughts closely and you found that you can't quite figure out what he's trying to say or prove.

That's the situation I was in today. As I watched one by one of the men and the ladies excused themselves and left, I found myself not paying much attention anymore to the discussion but my head was also busy trying to find reasons so I can leave too. How do you get out of such a situation without appearing rude or dismissive?

...and the phone beeped ever so gently, but to me at that point it sounded as if its the bell from the church tower on Sunday morning. Bong! I jumped out of my seat, excused myself and thank God for creating mobile phones!!

So I got home later in the evening, but my mind is still preoccupied by Jude's behaviour and how people reacted to his presence. I grabbed my camera and headed towards the garden and took some photos of the Austin's rose Jude the Obscure. These names are not coincidence. I have the tendency to buy plants and roses with names of people that circle around my life. As far as I remember Jude the person, used to be likeable, very humble and pleasant to talk with. I have no idea what happened to Jude and why suddenly people are avoiding him. Dare I tell him what I think? No. I dare not. The truth is always very hurtful. Besides, I've learnt to keep my advice to myself unless someone asked for it. Even then I am very careful about giving advice.

So, here's to Jude. Maybe one day he'll find this blog and read this post. Maybe not. How many guys really google for roses to read on the blog? The evening light had brought a bit of bluish tone to the soft yellow of these blooms.

This rose is very fragrant, one of the best fragrant roses from David Austin, but this rose is not really that suitable for my rainy weather garden. For several years, the blooms balled very badly. I had moved it several times trying to find the right spot. There are less rain this year since spring begun, with the month of May being the hottest and driest ever recorded in years. The first flush from Jude right now look so much better. Maybe this is the most suitable area for it under the canopy of the taller trees which filter half of the rain drops and the sudden drying sunshine after the rain.
Jude is seen here invading the space of Pegasus, also a D.A english rose.


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