Grace in the Ordinary
I don’t have a green thumb. But I deeply love flowers and their vibrant colors and their natural aromatherapy. Joy erupts from deep within me when I am surrounded by them. So this Spring I decided to transform my somewhat dull and barren deck into a “flower full” explosion. The excitement with which I chose the flowers from Lowe’s in their plastic containers and transplanted them into clay pots was overwhelming! Days passed. I watered. The Georgia sun blazed on their petals. The soil rapidly dried up. I watered some more. Some flourished to my amazement. And some withered an died, equally to my amazement.
I looked sadly and wantingly at the burnt up brown blossoms that were once screaming with colored life.
Then my mother, who truly does have a green thumb came to give some well needed advice. “You just need to dead-head them,” she said with such ease and confidence. “Dead head?” I queried dismissing images of punk rockers curiously enough. With a pair of scissors she tragically snipped off the heads of dead blossoms. The ones with no life. “Dead heading will allow new blossoms to grow” she said.
And in that instant, I heard God speak. I heard God teaching us again. Grace in the ordinary. Sometimes it takes some dead-heading in our lives to allow new life to grow. What dead heading needs to happen in your life? Dead words, dead thoughts, dead stories, maybe even some folks we need to chop out of our lives? You know, those things in our lives that give no life, no joy, no encouragement, no safety, no hope. And we need the courage to let them go. To cut them out.
Its simply amazing the transformation that takes place when you do a little dead heading. Hope restored. God’s grace. New growth. New possibilities. New beginnings. Abundant life. Now I sit and watch and water and wait for my new blossoms.
I can understand this, totally!! It’s grace and Peace in the small things that amaze me; always uplifting and i smile and say,Thank you, God…You are always showing us beauty and love when we need it in the smallest things …- from beautiful blossoms, to a lovely blue sky with white fluffy clouds floating by; to yellow butterfles fluttering about, to rainbows that take my breath away, to ocean waves at the beach, to birds chirping or feeding, to Hummingbirds, etc.; the sounds of summer, etc.etc.: Nature, at its best.. so very Grateful!
Beautiful Hebe! Thanks so much for sharing these graceful images.
Hi Beth-Sarah. Finally… I’ve found someone who’s green thumb is as lifeless as mine :) it is amazing where God can connect in the smallest of things, isn’t it? It was a pleasure meeting you and talking a bit at the Buechner workshop. I found it well worth my time and effort. Did you?
Carlen, I too enjoyed meeting you. The workshop was wonderful. Very provocative. I left with lots of ideas. I’m glad it was meaningful to you. And glad we’re in the thumbless club together…funny what the flowers can teach us about life. God speaks incessantly. Bless you!
So often we miss the important lessons because we ignore the small things! Thanks for the reminder.
Yes indeed. There is power in the small things. Like faith the size of a mustard seed that can move mountains! Thanks for reading.