For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills
And dances with the daffodils
From “I wandered lonely on a cloud” by William Wordsworth
As April began this week and I reflected on all that encompassed the month of March, I kept coming back to images of daffodils that remained a constant thread throughout. March 2020 will always be one of those times imprinted in our collective minds. Contrary to other events like 9/11 and when JFK was shot (for my parents’ generation), the Covid-19 pandemic is not a single moment, but rather a period of days and weeks. At first we saw the news from China and a situation developing there. We canceled trips to Asia and watched and waited. Some started taking precautions around London, but there was also a sense of “how could London even shut down?” It was unimaginable. Then Italy and Iran saw a rise in infections and other places still seemed ok. It loomed closer and closer until at last it accelerated throughout Western Europe, North America, and the world.
Amidst the scrambling to work from home, arrange flights and travel home for students and other family members, and the quest for toilet paper and essentials, there were daffodils everywhere and they always brought a smile to my face. Even as we left the house less and less often, the daffodils remained at the front door to greet us with their cheerful optimism. And now, as we conjure the words of William Wordsworth, we can lie on the couch and dream of the dancing daffodils.
While enduring the dramatic changes and anxiously awaiting the daily press conferences in our respective countries, the daffodils offered us the promise of spring. Every year, they are the first flowers to break free from the hard winter ground in search of light and sunshine. The bright yellow hues remind us of the sun even as winter persists. We tire of the dark and dreary days; and then the daffodil blossoms fill us with hope. It feels now as if we have entered a figurative winter in terms of being relegated to our homes across many countries. In this case, perhaps, the daffodils offer us a message of encouragement, that we too are tough and resilient. Like the daffodil bulbs in the fall, we have been buried under the soil of what our lives once were and must endure a period of cold and dark as we continue to seek the light. Like winter, what we are experiencing now is temporary, the light will return.
Daffodils are of the genus Narcissus named from Greek Mythology and there are several varieties. They start from bulbs. After flowering, they experience a period of dormancy and then regrow the following year. The word narcissus is also related to the word narcotic as it was once known to have an intoxicating aroma. Daffodils are given as a gift to ensure happiness and legend has it that they must be presented in a bunch, as a single bloom can represent misfortune. Daffodils symbolize rebirth and new beginnings and are said to inspire creativity. They are associated with forgiveness and are a suggested flower to offer as an apology. Daffodils are celebrated in art and literature across cultures for their gift of beauty. It appears that in addition to beauty, which can itself be intoxicating in our vulnerable moments of late winter, they offer plenty for us to ponder as we are reduced to staying at home looking upon our own reflections.
In Shakespeare’s A Winter’s Tale, “when the daffodils begin to peer…then comes the sweet o’ the year.” We will return to the sweetness of life; and until then, we have the couch and the images of dancing daffodils to make us smile and bring us joy each day.
