Dear friends. Dear little gazanias.

It's autumn in Sydney but gazanias are tough. This one is in the driveway.
In January, 1967, I was transferred to a one-teacher-school, in Maude via Hay, far-west New South Wales.
I was in invited to meet the principal of Hay Public School, 51 km from Maude, along a dust road.
His wife was tending the garden, of the headmaster's residence, beside the school. She pointed to her dear little gazanias (One of the few plants to do so well, in hot, dry, Hay.).
The principal, his wife and children became dear friends.
Where-ever I see dear little gazanias, I think of them. (E.g., they're often grown near beaches. I assess beaches, for the Keep Australia Beautiful, Clean Beach Challenge competition.)