Great Yellow Water Lily

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Recently, just at the end of THE Trip, Man and I visited the Amana Colonies in Iowa, where along the trail you will come to Lily Lake.   Water lilys everywhere!  We did not find a dock or any method of getting closer to the blooms, so, I zoomed Sony almost to the max and shot away to see what I might come away with.  What I have is a story of the bloom, beginning, middle, end.

Below a bloom just about to fully open.

And, below, the beginning and the end, both in one photo.  In the background you will see a tight green bud, and in the foreground a bloom closer to the end of its life.  The bloom is nothing special to look at, as it is rather beat up, either from the wind or the geese, but, look at the center, isn't that amazing??  Look what is left behind when the stamen fell off.

And, with the assistance of the photo editing program:

And, below, of course, the full bloom, just about perfect.

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