So what’s a cereus? And what does it have to do with video biographies?

Actually, I’m referring to a plant called a “night blooming Cereus.” It’s a droopy, spindly little cactus that exists here in Arizona. What makes it special is that it blooms only once a year, usually sometime between May and July.

It’s actually a pretty neat event. A plant that looks like a dead stick suddenly sprouts stalks topped with golf ball-sized buds that eventually open into beautiful white flowers. They last for just one night and morning, then wither away.

The Cereus is so nondescript that my wife and I didn’t even know we had two of them in our yard – until we saw some during a trip to the Tucson Botanical Gardens and realized, “Hey, so that’s what that strange plant in our yard is!”

Last year was the first time I went on a serious “Cereus watch.” When the buds opened, I was ready with a camera to document the event. Just last night our Cereus bloomed again – and my wife and I spent some time admiring the flowers that grace us with their presence just once a year.

So what’s this cactus got to do with Family Legacy Video and you? The blooming of the Cereus is a special event. If you blink, you can miss it. It’s such a rare event that it inspired me to document it through images I can now share with others. The stories that make up our lives and our family histories are also special and rare and deserve to be preserved on video, both to enjoy now and to pass on to other family members.

And don’t wait too long; in the blink of an eye your storytellers and their precious stories can be gone for good. So I urge you to capture your family storytellers while they’re in “full bloom.” Unlike with the Cereus, you might not get the chance next year.