81. Mustard

Spring time in the Santa Monica Mountains is incredible. The weather is perfect and the wild flowers are blooming. Literally everyday the hike changes and I notice some new flower popping up. A couple days ago the thistles were still closed up and today, purple tuffs. Soon the butterflies will be out! Can't wait.

For the past couple of weeks the flowering plant dominating the landscape has been the yellow mustard plant. As a child (and recently my own 4th grader) I learned about this plants part in California history. At the time that California was under the control of Spain, the Spaniards built the California Missions to both control the natives of the region and spread the word of Catholicism. In the south is the mission is San Diego, in the north is San Francisco, and in between are 21 missions a long day's journey apart along the El Camino Real (the Royal Road). Legend claims that the priests traveling this road dropped mustard seed along the way to mark the path for travelers the next spring. Creating a beautiful ribbon of gold flowers along the path of dirt.

I did some quick reference checking tonight on the mustard plant before hammering out this post. What I didn't realize is that the mustard seed is an important symbol in Catholicism. Who can blame me, Sunday school was 30 years ago. In a parable about faith from Mark, "It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade."

The Camino Real likely did not cut across the Santa Monica Mountains that border the southern edge of the San Fernando Valley. This would have taken out of the way if crossing from the San Fernando Mission in the north valley to the mission in Ventura. So my beautiful dirt path hike is not the Camino Real... none-the-less I image it is just as beautiful.