Elevator to the Sky

Someone asked me recently how I come up with what to write about. I told them how, when I notice something that captures my attention, I make a note of it.  After a while I ponder it anew to see if it may be blog-worthy.  Not everything that captures our attention is noteworthy.
On a recent visit to Kew Gardens in London I was reminded of another visit to the Botanical Gardens in Oxford. They had a scavenger hunt set up which kept my boys looking for a "rock-plant" throughout the visit.  After much searching we finally located the plant in one of the greenhouses.  It looked exactly as its name suggests, a small pebble or rock.  Their disappointment was evident.  It certainly wasn't a noteworthy specimen, just flat, brown and quite small.

But their letdown was unjustified.  The plant was exactly what it was promised to be, rock like.
At Kew we met a couple who were quite excited to visit the Bonsai exhibit. I expect the Bonsai trees will have given them the same unjustified let down.  They will see small trees, nothing more.  I can guarantee it won't take their breath away.
What I enjoy about gardens is what grows outside the greenhouses.  The plants that need no special attention but deliver a spectacular show of color that move each visitor in a different way.  The hot house orchids are showy, but they can't really compare with the blankets of yellow daffodils and bluebells claiming their place in the great outdoors.

We headed towards the Treetop Walk, which suggests some adventure park experience.  We climbed the steps and walked the walk.  We saw trees and... more trees.  It was exactly what it was designed to be, and somehow that was disappointing.
Its most interesting feature is the glass elevator for those who can't climb the stairs.  Its glass doors, when closed, hint at something magical on the other side.  But when you look through the glass you see only what is really there.
Not everything will amaze, most of the world is quite ordinary but wonderful none-the-less.