HAM CANS - LITTLE TIN SOLDIERS

My dad was always partial to the largest and showiest dahlias. His gardens were always dominated by the giants, and he made no secret of his preference for the big boys. Ray Brain, founding member of NCW Dahlia society, follows in Dad's footsteps, reluctant to grow anything smaller than an A (Large) or a very rare B (Medium), if it is a truly outstanding variety.  When I was a kid, I really took the large dahlias for granted. Even when a bloom was taller than I was, with a flower three times as large as my head, my general response was little more than a shrug....to me, it was just one of those everyday things, like apples on a tree, worms in the dirt, rain from the clouds or stars in the sky. I was jaded.

It took several decades for the wonder that is the natural world to take root in my heart and soul...it's not that I didn't like nature....I did. I loved to be outside in the sunshine, climbing trees, playing in mud, chasing the chickens around the yard......But I never really thought about how things came to be, or what effect humans could have on the environment. Since my foray into dahlia-land, which began a couple years before my dad's passing in 2006, I have gained a new appreciation for everything in my world. Life through the lens of a dahlia is nothing short of fascinating, and the thrill of small victories in germination, propagation and infinitesimal growth possesses me on a daily basis. I now realize the magic in an apple, the industry of the lowly worm, the rescue of a rainstorm and the infinity in the stars. Nothing is ordinary anymore.

Which brings me to the ham cans. Yes.....I said "ham cans." No, not those oval things that are shaped kind of like a pork shoulder. I'm talking about the rectangular tins with square openings, into which bits of ham were pressed into back in the fifties, with little tin keys that you inserted into a tab which, when peeled away, opened the can, and allowed the clear ooze of sweet, salty ham gelatin a welcome release on a Sunday morning. Dahlia enthusiasts in Snohomish County, where I grew up, LOVED these things - not the ham - but the cans. The reasoning behind this, of course, had to do with exhibition of the giant and large dahlias. When painted (back in the day, they were painted light green) and filled with shredded foam, these cans were absolutely perfect for a triple entry of the largest and boldest flowers. I've been exhibiting for several years, and I always see these cans show up in the entries from the folks in Snohomish and King Counties. I don't know what your experience has been, but I've noticed that dahlia exhibitors are very possessive of their vases, cans and other exhibition paraphernalia - I plead guilty to this myself, so hopefully I don't hurt anybody's feelings when I say this. We can be downright obsessive about making sure we gather up all our chopsticks, skewers, pipecleaners, milk crates, receptacles and exhibition vases at the end of any show.  I've had about a half-dozen of these cans that I have used over the years, and have been told by some of the old-timers that these things are like gold, and then they double-check to make sure that I don't "accidentally" get one of their cans mixed up with mine...:-)

A few months ago, I was talking to my sister Vicki, who lives in the family home with Mom. I mentioned how I would love to have more of these cans, since I've started exhibiting more. She told me that there were a lot more of them in the loft above the garage, if I wanted to go up there and get them down. This afternoon, I was over visiting Mom, and I remembered about the cans. So I climbed up into the dark dusty loft, and lo! and behold.....25 of these wonderful cans! 4 trips up and down the ladder later, these cans were in my trunk, on their way to having their "pageant-dreams" come true! A few cans of black spray paint from the hardware store to make sure they are properly dressed, a little cleaning, dusting and scrubbing to remove the rusty remnants of long-ago floralife, and we will be "ready for (our) close-up, Mr. DeMille......" My knees get weak, and my heart starts to pound with anticipation.....I can hardly wait for their comeback this year at Kitsap County, August 3....