Annuals don’t expect immortality, so I don’t give it to them. When the temperatures dip into the 20s and teens, I let them go gracefully, don’t bring them inside for the winter. I’ve seen enough thin, leggy geraniums to realize when a flower is past its prime.

Which is not to say I don’t care. This time of year I often look outside first thing to see if the begonias have made it another night.

And last night, for one more night, they did.