God comes to you disguised as your life.
--Paula D'arcy--

Queen Anne’s Lace, also know as “wild carrot,” can be found across the United States and in southern Canada. It’s not nearly as common in northern Louisiana as in Arkansas, so when I drive north to hike with friends at Arkansas Native Plant Society gatherings, I look forward to seeing roadsides blanketed with flat-topped flowerheads called “umbels.”

Look closely at an umbel from above and you’ll see that the florets comprise a complex, intricate repeating pattern quite reminiscent of the sort of lace needlework Queen Anne of Britain and Scotland was known for.

But there’s a tragic side to the story of this flower and it’s namesake. Queen Anne worked very hard to bear an heir to the throne. She was pregnant an astonishing 18 times. Most ended in miscarriages. Two babies were born alive. Only one of those survived infancy, but even that child did not survive her. She died childless.

At the very center of the Queen Anne’s lace umbel three tiny, blood-red flowers testify to her tragic losses yet faithful pursuit of the family she so desired.