The dahlia came up against a dark wall, at the exact height of the early light, and for four days it was the best thing in the garden.
On the fifth day it rained, and the flower went the way of all flowers. I have the picture. It is a good picture and it is not the flower.
I used to find that sad. Now I find it the most honest thing about the whole arrangement: the frame keeps the shape and lets the thing go.