Festus.
Festus is the Corpse Flower that plans to bloom soon ... at least, according to the zoo. My friend and I think differently. We are no experts, but we spent a week going to Boston every day after work to see the previous blooming corpse flower, Morticia. We missed her blooming and her smell by mere hours due to an unusual hot spell that fall. We know the signs of a soon-to-bloom Corpse Flower, and Festus isn't ready yet. He hasn't shown the signs. Back when Morticia bloomed in 2012, Festus was just a tiny baby of a plant. Now he is all grown up. And so, we visit and we wait, and we wait and we plan.
I'm not entirely certain that I want to smell Festus when he opens. I've smelled rotting animal before, and it brought on hours of dry-heaving. However, there is a certain sense of closure we can grant ourselves once we know the truth and once we've smelled it for ourselves. So, we continue to watch Festus and plan a visit or two more.Bloom on, Festus. Wait for us, if you can, but bloom on, kid. Maybe we'll play the Matching Poop Game until you see fit to grace us all with your stink.
