When first we kissed beside the thorn,
So strangely sweet, it was not strange
We thought that love could never change.
But I can tell--- let truth be told---
That love will change in growing old;
Though day by day is nought to see,
So delicate his motions be.
So Sweet Love Seemed, Robert Bridges, 1844-1930
This vivid blue flower, which grows wild in cornfields, is known as Bluebottle, Ragged Sailor, and Hurt-sickle, because its tough stems blunt the reaper's tools.
In days of yore, if a girl wore a cornflower it meant she was available for marriage. If a young man put a cornflower in his pocket, he was in love. If the flower lived it was a sign that he should marry; if it died, he must find another sweetheart. It was also believed that if a girl hid the flower under her apron, she would have the bachelor of her choice. Thus the name Bachelor's Buttons.
Greek legend tells how Chiron the Centaur wounded by Hercules' poisonous arrows covered his wounds with cornflowers and was healed.
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