Last year a dug my silted little pond out with an excavator.

This year I have these flowers blooming. I didn't plant them & they weren't there before.

I'm not sure if they're a lotus but I really love them. 

#bloomstr #flowerstr

https://i.nostr.build/Jstik85xpKjVnq8K.jpg 

 Looks more like a water lily of some sort to me because of the slit in the pad. Pretty cool that they spontaneously emerged. 

 Central floral parts are also different, and that color is not found in lotuses. 

 Water lilies (Nymphaea) not lotus (Nelumbo)
So beautiful!  Love the blue ones. Do they smell? 

 I'm not sure if they smell. It's a bit hard to get my head down to them, I'd need to pick a flower which is difficult in itself. 

Thanks for the ID.