Last Sunday started famously with a small family gathering under the Michigan sun while temperatures remained in the 60s. Sometime in the afternoon, however, my blog went offline, and it took nearly 20 hours to correct the problem. That was annoying, but it was the least of the troubles that punctured my relatively trouble-free existence before the sun went down. Mid-afternoon, I took our dear cat Cleo to the vet’s. Over the last two months, she’s had increasing difficulty keeping food down, and cleaning cat puke off the floors and furnishings has become a daily occupation. Our vet suspected a thyroid disorder, but with the cat on the exam table, her expert diagnostic skills led to the discovery of a lymphoma that strikes the intestines. It’s impossible to know our perfect pet’s prognosis, but she may not make it through the summer.
Still, Cleo will be 16 years old in July, and while we hate to lose her, such events are inevitable. My kids were all home this week, so everyone was able to say their goodbyes. The disturbing news that kept me up half the night on Sunday had little to do with Cleo. Instead, I was shaken after hearing that vandals had entered a public peony garden situated less than a mile from our home and whacked away at the blooms, leaving them on the ground to rot.
The Nichols Arboretum
Living in a college town has a lot of perks, but one of my favorite features of Ann Arbor is a 123-acre nature area called the Nichols Arboretum. I frequently walk through it, down a long, winding, traffic-free dirt road, beneath a canopy of trees, to reach the gentle currents of the Huron River. The park is co-owned by the city of Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan. Its forests, fields, prairie, and gardens are carefully tended, and I can unequivocally say that every time I walk there, I marvel at the beauty, no matter the season.
Perhaps the Arb (as locals refer to it) is best known for the W.E. Upjohn Peony Garden, originally planted in 1922. Every year, our city welcomes between 75,000 to 100,000 visitors from around the world who come to see North America’s most extensive collection of heirloom and antique peonies. Starting around Memorial Day, the questions locals ask each other include, “Have you been to the peony garden lately?” “Do you know if it’s starting to flower?”
My husband and I walked through last week and confirmed that the peonies might well be at peak color by Wednesday, when my niece would be visiting from Long Island with her 1-year-old. We talked about picnicking there and looked forward to capturing some pictures of the little one surrounded by blooms that rival the size of her head.
Sunday evening, however, the world we were expecting was no longer intact. A link to an Instagram post sent by a neighbor conveyed the bad news. Thousands of blooms had been cut off the plants and left behind, the carnage of an unprovoked attack.
Misguided Activism
Luckily, the peonies have been well cared for. None were damaged beyond repair, and they will bloom again next year. Law enforcement arrived and scared the vandals away before they could inflict even more harm on the garden’s vast collection. Its 27 beds hold roughly 800 peony plants with a focus on historic varieties introduced before 1950. If you’re lucky enough to time your visit when the flowers are at their peak, you’ll find a display of over 10,000 luscious blossoms. It’s a favorite spot for prom, graduation, and wedding photos, but the garden also supports horticultural research and conservation initiatives.
Sadly, last Saturday’s attack was part of a political protest. The vandals left flyers behind chastising the university and local residents for caring more about plants than they do about human lives. I found the demonstrators’ actions so misguided that I initially wondered if adversaries, attempting to slander their cause, had carried out the strike to make them look bad. Destruction of any kind does nothing to win hearts and minds. Instead, the perpetrators may only succeed in weakening support for the very cause they wish to bolster.
The incident reminds me of environmental activists who, in 2022, defaced famous works of art to raise awareness and gain followers. Studies have shown that such undertakings have an adverse effect on increasing public support. Instead, they undermine public sympathy rather than strengthen it.
Compared to the average American citizen, most people in our small city are quite politically aware. They regularly engage in political conversations, they volunteer during election season, they read and write about controversial issues, and donate to a variety of causes. In this case, many are supporters of the very movement the vandals accused them of ignoring.
In the end, I don’t think the attack on the peony garden will do much, if anything, to raise awareness. I suspect that most of us who already supported the stated cause will continue to do so, even if we oppose destructive forms of protest. Adversaries of the movement will use the operation as a talking point to illustrate the harmful and thoughtless mindset of the movement’s supporters. And, the uncommitted will remain uncommitted, their instincts to stay uninvolved reinforced by the fear of becoming part of something that could ultimately harm their way of life.
Yes, We Value our Peonies
The world is full of tragedy, and I salute those who diligently work to reduce human suffering. We should all be aware of the miseries that plague our fellow human beings and strive to create a better world. However, I don’t think it’s helpful to allow ourselves to be consumed with worry and outrage. There is still much to be cherished on this planet, nature and art being two phenomena that deserve our devotion. If we fail to nourish the wonders of creation, we risk making a world without much worth living for.
In that light, I’ve peppered this post with the works of French masters that, at one moment or another, recognized the beauty and serenity afforded by the unpretentious peony.
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Nice post, Carol, despite the human stupidity of whacking off a thousand flowers to make a political statement.
There are many other ways to do that… But could that just be an example of misdirection?
A couple of years ago, in Nantes, a few days before May 1st, environmental activists ravaged a plantation of Muguet. Muguet is the traditional flower to celebrate May first. Their point was that muguet was not a food-crop and was wasting precious resources such as water…
Of course the farmers who had invested millions in planting and caring for the muguet lost a bundle on May 1st…
I think of Saint-Exupéry and his dread of the coming “fourmilière”… Have you read Saint-Ex?
Oh yeah! The muguet incident is a perfect example of the kind of protesting that I’m dubious about, Brieuc. I remember now that this happened and I felt sorry for the farmers at the time, but I thought the French government ended up compensating them for the damages. So in the end, it was the taxpayer who bore the brunt. Again, I doubt the action did much to garner supporters.
It’s funny that you bring up Saint-Exupéry. I have only read The Little Prince but he’s definitely on my Want-to-read-more-of list. As you saw, I tried to work a bit of French culture into the post by adding the peony paintings. Well, I’d also selected a quote by Saint-Exupéry but I didn’t have time to find a way to work it in:
« On ne voit bien qu’avec le cœur. L’essentiel est invisible pour les yeux. »
“One only sees clearly with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.”
Thanks for giving me an opening. 🙂
That is a very well-know and wonderful quote. I recommend “Terre des hommes”. Beautiful. And “Pilote de guerre” for the love of France…
I picked up a copy of the latter on a used bookshelf at our library several years ago. One of these years, I’ll get to it. Malheureusement, my reading ambitions far exceed my reading speed.
It’s all right. I know the feeling about so many books to read, so little time. Now Terre des hommes is short… Bonne semaine
You’re so right Carol, and I appreciate the gorgeous art work that you used to make your point. It’s difficult for me to comprehend why anyone who is concerned about human suffering would think that a degradation of natural beauty makes any sense at all.
The arboretum sounds lovely. I wish I had a place like that within walking distance of my home.
So sorry to hear about your beloved cat. It’s one thing to acknowledge the inevitability of a furry companion’s passing–and quite another to experience and adjust to the loss.
I agree Annie. In the end, the action fell on deaf on ears, and at least no plants were permanently damaged.
The Arb is truly special. Just walked through again yesterday with my son who is visiting from Seattle. The place holds a host of fond memories for us.
Regarding Cleo, she seems to be doing better. She’s on prednisone, which is probably reducing the inflammation of her intestines so food has an easier time getting through. I also thought that it might serve Cleo well if we gave her several small meals over the course of a day instead of feeding her only once in the morning and once at night. This gives her longer to digest a small serving before packing in more. We’ve been doing that and have seen hardly any vomit. Given that we’ve introduced two new variables into our much-adored test subject, it’s hard to tell if only one or both are having a positive effect but the end result has raised our hopes and spirits.
I initially wondered if adversaries, attempting to slander their cause, had carried out the strike to make them look bad
Never underestimate the stupidity of ideologists. If there is any limit to the depths of idiotic destructiveness that fanatical commitment to a cause can plumb, I have yet to encounter it.
The claimed logic — which is surprisingly common among such people — is that it is wrong to care about issue A if issue B is more important. By that argument, of course, we should all decide on what is the single most serious problem in the world and care only about that one problem, while ignoring everything else. This would obviously be absurd. Moreover, the existence of bad things is not a reason for destroying good things. If anything, the ability to enjoy things like flower gardens probably helps in the struggle to improve the world, by providing a periodic necessary respite from it.
In the case of a lot of vandals, however, I suspect something else is going on. Some people are simply destructive by nature, and seize upon whatever justification the local mental environment offers. The same people who destroy flowers, vandalize art, block traffic, etc for the supposed sake of some cause — if they had been born in a different time and/or place they might have been blowing up Buddha statues or planting bombs on subways in the name of Allah, or destroying traditional Chinese paintings to advance Mao’s Cultural Revolution, or burning pagan books because they displeased the Christian God. For some, the urge to destroy is the point, and they find whatever “reason” they can.
In any case, I hope law enforcement was able to capture at least some of the vandals and not just “scare them away”. When this kind of behavior is not firmly deterred by penalties, it tends to escalate in successive incidents.
I am sorry to hear of Cleo’s diagnosis. As you say, such events are inevitable, but every such loss is painful. It’s the inevitable price we pay for allowing ourselves to care.
Yes, all signs point to ideologists (and not their saboteurs) being behind the vandalism. Though they weren’t courageous enough to identify an organization. I tend to agree with you that “some people are simply destructive by nature”. In this case, they could have done a lot more damage so I’m oddly grateful that they only cut off blooms.
I don’t know if law enforcement has much of a chance of finding them but I could be wrong. What is also a shame is that the attack has only increased the resources that will go to the peony garden. Officers (not security guards) have been on duty in the area around the clock. I’ve noticed at least one security camera. Probably next year, there will be more. So, the objective of trying to direct funds away from the plants and toward saving human lives has completely backfired.
You’ll find a positive note on Cleo in my reply to Annie. Thanks for your sensitivity, Infidel.
Infidel, thank you for yet another thoughtful commentary. I am a friend of Carol’s, and read her blog consistently. I read the comments as well, and I really appreciate yours. You always have worthwhile observations, and give me more to think about. Two lines from above that I like: “The claimed logic….— is that it is wrong to care about issue A if issue B is more important.”
And, “Moreover, the existence of bad things is not a reason for destroying good things.”
So true!
I also admire how well-crafted your comments are.
Merci!
Mary Beth
I second your observations Mary Beth. Thanks for weighing in.
Thank you for the kind words — I really appreciate it. Carol’s posts always provide something worth thinking about. And in this case, the sheer dumbth embodied by flower vandalism can only be inspirational (in a perverse way).
I also have my own blog, in case you’re interested (click my name above the comment).
Who on earth thinks this kind of thing helps their cause? Yes, it draws attention to it, but how does it help?
That’s a great question Caroline. A fair amount of effort when into producing the flyers so this wasn’t a spur of the moment operation.