Teddy Bear - Zinnia Bear - Tequila Sunrise Zinnia

The zinnia plant, both flowers and leaves, were used by many southwestern tribes as medicinal and ritual herbs. Some have said that the Navajo tribe considers the zinnia one of the sacred life medicines. Still other, Pueblo, tribes are thought to believe the zinnia a symbol of wisdom. We do know, however, that zinnias were used by some southwestern tribes to make brightly-colored dyes and paints. The zinnia, itself, is representative of lasting friendship, affection, constancy and goodness. The orange zinnia, specifically, is symbolic of happiness, energy and warmth. Of course that may be because those are attributes of the color itself. However, this gorgeous bloom also possesses touches of pink and yellow -- imbuing it with a representation of "lasting affection" and "daily remembrance". From 1931 to 1957, the lovely zinnia also had the distinction of being the Indiana State Flower. It was replaced by the peony in 1957. This delightful, sunny bloom is featured front and center on this lovely little bear. A lot of people don't know that Teddy Bears came about as the result of a hunting trip in Mississippi back in 1902. Then President, Theodore Roosevelt, hadn't had much luck hunting bear that day. Some men from his hunting party cornered a bear for him to shoot. He felt this was rather unsportsmanlike and refused to shoot the bear. A couple of days later, a political cartoonist named Clifford Berryman published a cartoon in the Washington Post that poked a little fun at the President's refusal to shoot the bear. A shop owner in Brooklyn saw the cartoon and came up with the idea to make a stuffed bear and dedicate it to the president. He called the stuffed animal, "Teddy's Bear". Later, the shop owner, Morris Michtom, obtained permission from the President to use his name and mass produced the toy bears. This lovely little bear is an excellent option for new babies, birthdays or even Mother's Day!