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Happy Birthday, leaf_of_grass@lj!
“Calamus (Kalamos). A son of the river-god Maeander, was united in tenderest love with Carpus (Karpos), the son of Zephyrus and one of the Horae, a youth of surpassing beauty. When both were bathing in the Maeander and swimming for a wager, Carpus was drowned. In his grief, Calamus is changed into a reed, and when it rustled in the wind the ancients heard in the sound a song of lamentations…”
The calamus plant is native to the northeast region on the U.S., where, among many other names, it is called sweet flag. It is found along river banks and in swampy areas. It was a favorite of Henry David Thoreau (who called it sweet flag) and of Walt Whitman.
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