I crossed a country road other day and stumbled into a field brimming with white poppies. It was unexpected and joyful. Just rows and rows of them bobbing in the breeze. Their crumpled, white petals sat like cotton mob-caps upon green heads.
![Standing out from the crowd A red poppy amongst white poppies](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit1tB-LwF63edFU26t_YoL-JPsv0k7aQqbOwVPJ65LH8nIJlC2k56XTLAjFb-o6x3bzLHd5dwk2z1PhZJKUUi4H_eNEq_vqxhl5aZcTQuua3XEiO5bYHLJmRXqY2MMnhVCFAms7PQT-ho/s1600/IMG_2658.JPG) |
No wallflower |
A little further on, my friend and I spotted a single red poppy, amid a sea of white. The metaphor was irresistible: the one that stood out from the crowd. Further on still, we spotted another red poppy, or another free spirit determined to make its mark.
Last weekend, I spent two days with hundreds of bloggers at the BritMums annual jamboree. It was a seething, bubbling mass of blogger-brains, all trying to fit in and each trying to be different. Perhaps this is the dilemma we all face: how to be part of a community whilst hanging onto our individuality.