The Wisp of the Gekka-Bijin

Gekka what?!?  And, no, I am not referring to some title of a cool Japanese anime.  It’s what the Japanese call the night blooming cereus (cactus).  Here in America, it is called the “Queen of the Night” and the Japanese call it Gekka-Bijin, or the “Beautiful Lady Under the Moon” (Gekka means below or under the moon, and Bijin means beautiful lady).

This cactus plant is native to the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Desert in North America.  They bloom in the summer evening, just once or twice a year.

As usual, my wife was the one who educated me about this plant, and explained the urgency of seeing it.  Like I mentioned in my previous posts, she is the cultured one.  Anyways, now I understand her excitement about these cactus plants.  It is apparently big news in Japan since the Gekka-Bijin blooms every summer in Japan as well.  It must be the intrigue of its origin or that you have a very small window to see it fully bloomed.  And the Japanese people have great empathy for fragile beauty, as they have given this plant the name Gekka-Bijin, which evokes the image of a beautiful woman seen by moonlight, or gazing at the moon.

Well, surprise!  We have the Gekka-Bijin right here in Hawaii, and now I truly understand my wife’s excitement and sense of urgency.  It is that time of the year when it blooms, and if we miss it … oh well, need to wait till next year.  So we drove down to a private school called Punahou School, and along one end of Wilder Avenue the so-called cactus plant covered the school’s wall.  There were lots of them … but they had already bloomed and closed up for the next year.  We frantically walked along the wall, hunting for a fully bloomed Gekka-Bijin but there was none in sight.  Then, finally, we saw a bunch of buds ready to be bloomed … but not tonight.  We compared the buds among the cactus plants by observing and touching them.  We noticed that some were still compact in size and hard, however, there were a good number of them that were more plump and softer – those will be blooming soon, but not tonight.

We went home that night, a little disappointed, however, excited that we still had an opportunity to see it in full bloom.  Okay, I said “we” … and yes, I was excited since I never knew about the Gekka-Bijin, and I wanted to see how beautiful it was fully bloomed.

We waited a few more nights, and voila … we saw it!  My wife was right … it was a beautiful flower … and to think it came from a cactus plant!

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

Reflecting on what we did and saw a few weeks ago, I realized how well it related to the mindset of a successful person.

• The unattractive, prickly cactus and the Gekka-Bijin.
  Success will take time and effort on your part … no one is going to help you "bloom" into an overnight success! Maybe your current situation needs improvement. Don't give up! Persistence and consistency is key.
   
• The buds of the cactus.
  Similarly to how we “researched” the difference between the buds of the cactus plant and devised a plan for our next visit, we must also do the same for our own successes. Remember the saying, "If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail"?


• The small window of opportunity to see the Gekka-Bijin.
  “You snooze you lose”.  You’ve heard that saying before, right?  So if you don’t do anything about it, you will miss the opportunity to see the fully bloomed Gekka-Bijin.  Same goes with your opportunities for success. Seize the moment!

With proper research, planning, patience, focus, and implementation, you can position yourself for success.

P.S. It’s already September, however, if you’re in Honolulu, there’s still a chance to get a glimpse of the fully bloomed Gekka-Bijin along the walls of Punahou school.  And … if you plan to visit Honolulu in the near future during August through September, don’t forget to get a glimpse of the elusive Gekka-Bijin.

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