patience really is a virtue

 I spent the last 7 years waiting patiently for my climbing roses to reach the top of my arbor and cascade beautifully down the other side. Last Fall they finally made it to the top. And then . . . for the first time ever, they froze in the frigid winter weather and died completely off. Or so I thought. I wasn't the only one to loose my roses. Most of my neighbors lost not only roses, but also shrubs that they had been growing for 15 years. I asked around to see if I should dig the roses completely out and start fresh. The general consensus was that the roses were a lost cause. I was told by a few that even if they started sending out branches, the branches would probably just be suckers that wouldn't bloom at all. I stewed about this for a few weeks. I just wasn't ready to give up on them. I started to see a few signs of life and decided to leave them in for a month or so and see what happened. As expected, the branches started to sprout up, but had no buds on them. At least at first. After the month was up, I started seeing a few buds here and there. Long story short, it has taken all Summer, and into the Fall, but my roses have bloomed beautifully this year and have reached the top of the arbor. Also, the color seems to be more vivid than years past. Perhaps it was just good luck, but I'll take it. Patience really does pay off.