I loved your image of the leaves holding hands. I'd not grown gloriosas before this year either. I love the flowers, but the leaves reaching out and connecting with others is enchanting. When I first noticed that behavior, this popped into my head: Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin. How odd, I thought. Where in the world did that come from--and why? Then I realized it was a biblical quote. But how did it fit this situation? Yes, it's a lily, but it seemed like there was more that was relevant. It suddenly hit me: spin! Contrary to other lilies, this one DOES spin. One of the meanings of "spin" is "to twist together." And that's what gloriosa lily leaves do.
