Gentian (gentiana clusii) growing in the Austrian Alps. ©iStockphoto/Pferd

The flowers I planted wouldn’t bloom before we left Vogelweh, Germany, to return to the United States. Two brothers that were my playmates feared I would be disappointed. They bought flowers, stuck them in the ground, then came to get me so I could pick them. Then they handed me a small package. Inside was a beautiful purple gentian (gentian clusii) pin to help me “remember the flowers of Germany.”

I never saw these military family boys again. The pin broke, then was stolen. But memory of hearts so kind they would plant flowers to avoid disappointment for a six-year-old girl hasn’t faded.