Mysterious Flower

This is my favorite flower.

In May, it was all over Corona Heights. And so, every day for the last month or so, I’ve thought, “Next time I walk the dogs, I should really bring the camera and take a picture of that flower so that I can figure out what it is.” Because how can I have a favorite flower when I don’t even know its name?

But I kept forgetting, and the flowers went by, until two days ago, when I could only find one in the entire park. Luckily, I had finally remembered the camera, so I got my picture.

Dog menacing flower

Don't worry. Shelby didn't defile the last of my pretty flowers. He was just passing through.

My aunt Carol and her husband have a talent for naming things. Unknown flowers get names like “brewer’s bladder,” or “temptress’s worry” and mystery birds fly away bearing names like “red-throated findly binches” or “twilby’s finches” or, well, you get the idea. Which is to say, I know I could invent a name for it, but then how could I find a common ground with my fellow flower-lovers?

So, I’m turning to the wisdom of the internet: what on earth is that thing?