“And you have put on a new self which will progress toward true knowledge the more it is renewed in the image of the creator…as the Chosen of God, then, the Holy people whom He loves, you are to be clothed in heartfelt compassion, in generosity and humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another, forgive each other…over all of these clothes, put on love…the perfect bond. And, may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts….Always be thankful.” Grateful I am that I am a picture taker, both in reality with a camera and in heart, in mind in spirit.
Grateful I am that I had a precious season of total joy watching the tulips Ian gave me for Christmas go from gift box to ground as Winter took over the foundation of our home. Photos of the gift box….the opening of each tulip bulb bag and the official planting into the ground are all commemorated on paper.
I have always wanted pink tulips as a part of my homes décor. I don’t know why, but I can remember even as a little girl enjoying and being slightly envious of those homes who were blanketed in the delicate beauty of tulips.
So, it was a lovely gift from Ian who remembered my love of tulips from my youth…his memory of these smallish details is amazing. And, even more so lovely is that he would pick out, purchase and plant these brownish-golden bulbs knowing the my heart would leap and bound with excitement and anticipation of waiting for their first bloom.
He planted. I watched and waited.
He watched me.
Our winter being unseasonably warm brought worry to my heart…I could see green peeking through the ground way before I knew it should. Early bloom was a clear risk of early demise.
I ran down the stairs and out to our yard each early morning to see our tulips progress….first the leaves, then the stem….then baby buds.
Love love loved it!
I took photos every few days ever wanting to document God’s precious handiwork!
Little miracles happening right there in my front and side yards.
“prettiful” as Madison says.
There is something just absolutely magical when you take the time to watch God at work in your garden and in your life.
And, those beloved tulips were not just pretty. They were absolutely abounding with beauty.
I admired their strong stems and thick blossoms and remember telling Ian I wanted to be like that. Strong, firm yet delicate and beautiful…not my physical presence, but my soul…..
That that was my goal as I hit 50…..to be a reflection of God in such a way that when others look at me they see not a wilting flower whose life has beat her down, but a strong and lovely flower in full bloom and reflecting His glory.
And, these beauties…three different shades of pink from demure pinkish white to bold and beautiful pink were constant reminders of my goal each morning as I tumbled out of bed, ran down the length of stairs to view them each morning.
One thing which continually puzzled me about my pink lovelies was that while some and frankly most of them were quick to grow and blossom and bloom, there were and still are several “late bloomers’ who have yet to reach their peak.
I asked Ian, “why is it that there are some buds which have not even grown tall yet? Are they bashful? Is their soil still too cool? Does their location determine their bloom season?”
Ian told me that he truly didn’t know why some bloomed so boldly while others stayed home in the ground. But, he did tell me to watch and wait and that time would show us the story of the non-blooming buds.
And, he was right.
Just one day after my and Ian’s conversation, a bizarre event of life took place. We had a hail storm, the likes of which I have never seen in my 50 years. I sat at my kitchen table with good friend Morgan and waited out the storm. Hail the size of large peas pelted my home, deck and yard. It was surreal in how quickly it came and how quickly it passed.I told Morgan not to fear…that while it came out of nowhere, my limited experience was that it would not last long, and I was right. Within minutes the storm brought its dark, mean-spirited hail right down and then left as quickly as it came leaving sunshine and glistening lightness in its wake.
Then it hit me.
My tulips.
Tulips can withstand a lot of things....cold ground, early spring, spring rains.
But, tulips cannot survive hard hail.
My beautiful and lovely pink tulips were not just beaten and broken by the hail. They were destroyed. Gone was their sweetness and perky attitude and remaining was broken green stems and torn petals. Pink petals were scattered all over our flower bed.
It was very sad to me. I was just beginning to enjoy them. They were only a week old…
And, I remembered Ian telling and preparing me when he planted them that the good thing about tulips is that they are one of the most beautiful plants God makes. They have lovely color, they are bold flowers growing tall and delicate yet their stems and leaves are strong and green. But, he also told me that they have one life per season. If anything were to happen to them, they were gone until the next blooming year. In addition, he explained that while you waited all year for them to bloom, they only had a life of about two weeks…..
Two weeks?
So, of what value is it to grow them if you are only able to enjoy them two weeks?
Immeasurable.
Let me tell you…their value to me was and is immeasurable.
I enjoyed my tulip-gifts from Ian and God.
In ways I cannot explain. They were a symbol to me of many sweet and precious things.
So, I am sad that their life was cut short. As I tend to them now, picking up pink petals and caring for broken stems, I am very sad.
Even the “Mama and baby tulips” which I photographed and posted to my Facebook page were not able to survive.
But, as I cleaned out my tulip bed, I noticed something. Those “late bloomers” remained.
Seven of them.
Out of 36 tulips planted late December, Seven had survived and would eventually blossom and bloom and grow lovely.
I am grateful for each and every one of them.
They are God’s reminder to me that we are to be and grow and become our very best blossoms in this Garden we call life…to reflect His glory in such a way as to touch the hearts of those who witness our lives. But, they are also His reminder to me that life and its hurts and tragedies will bear down on us in ways in which we will die little deaths, break into little pieces, temporarily lose our hope.
But, I know as well, that He never leaves us. Never quits on us. Never takes away all hope.
He, in His infinite love and wisdom and compassion will send us gentle reminders that He is There with us always and forever.
And, that is what I see and will remember as I watch these hail storm survivors.
They are God’s handiwork….His reminder to me that we are to always keep the faith, always abound in joy and always find hope in Him.
And, always always find ways to be grateful.
So, I will.
Blessings,
Lesa
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