The cover to the March 1997 Smithsonian features one large perfect lotus bloom, and the words:

A lotus blooms in a garden of strange delights

Here, vivid blooms give way to muted greens and grays and beiges, in spikes, droopy and phantasmagoric shapes. Towering needle-leafed tree ferns shade the curving gravel walks with greenish gloom. Small succulents called burro's tails hang from live oaks, protected from marauding birds by conical hats of copper mesh. Dragon trees drip what looks like human blood. Cacti bristle and palms fan the sky. More than 100 species of bromeliads catch rainfall in miniature reservoirs formed by their leaves. Perhaps the most prized display is made up of rare cyclids, plants dating from the days of the dinosaurs...

The major concepts were all Madame Walska's ideas, and she gained a reputation for collecting unusual items to include in her displays. In the fescue-carpeted blue garden, where greens mingle with aquamarines and azures, irregular chunks of blue glass border the walks and twinkle back in the sunlight. They were rescued from a scrap heap at a Southern California bottling plant. Abalone shells gathered from Santa Barbara fisheries surround the pool in the aloe garden, where she had giant clamshells from the Tasmin Sea converted to fountains. Bronze cranes wade in the pool in the Japanese garden...

However the most emotionally moving performance I've ever seen was at the 1984 Winter Olympics by Torvill and Dean, an English couple. From the first moment of Bolero, I was electrified. They began motionless for the first few seconds, which held us in suspense. Then their eloquent moves unfurled one by one to the thrilling conclusion, which won perfect scores from every judge. Tears came to my eyes with awe for the great beauty humanity can achieve. I watched their artistry in Joliet, Illinois, with my grandmother. I didn't know nearly 1800 miles away, my future spouse Laura was also watching that exact same moment, also teary-eyed and electrified. Later, we each spoke of Torvill and Dean's awe- inspiring athletic event. Laura and I rejoiced to have had that shared experience. That we were both so swept away adds to proof that tendrils of our relationship transcend time and space.