Rare Appearance

The lotus flower is an important symbol in every major religion and is particularly prevalent in Hindu and Buddhist imagery. Once a year, it blooms from dank and dark mud in shallow water for two to three days and then is gone, an example of the brevity of life. This flower bloomed on Aug. 16 in Philipstown in the Route 9 garden of Chakra Oeur and Sokhara Kim, owners of Nice & Neat Dry Cleaning and a Cambodian food cart that is open most Sundays during the summer.