Peace Plant

A few days from now will mark the 5th anniversary of my beloved daddy’s passing. He was a wonderful father and I was his little girl. That little girl part of me carried over into my teen years, through college and even into my adult years. There was really nothing I could not talk to my daddy about and I am truly thankful that God blessed me with a man that was not only a father but he knew how to be “daddy.”

His passing in 2007 came 16 months after my mom went home to be with the Lord and needless to say it left a huge hole in my heart. Even though I greatly grieved the loss of my mother, I found comfort in knowing my daddy was still with me even though he was frail and ill as well. So when his time to leave us came, the finality of having both parents gone was very difficult for me as well as my siblings.

About a week after my daddy passed away a dear sister-in-law sent me a beautiful small peace plant as a token of love and comfort. It had one lovely lily in full bloom. At the time I had two kitties and one of them had a bad habit of digging in any potted plant she could reach into. I did not want to risk any harm to this plant so after some thought I put it in our master bathroom where the lighting is very good. Between the steam from the daily showers and the good light this peace plant began to flourish.

Then last fall I noticed that it was looking a bit “puny” with leaves dropping or turning brown. I tried a bit of fertilizer, more water, less water—still it just did not have the spunk or color it once had. My husband was ready to toss the plant but I insisted we should not give up on it. I decided it needed repotting thinking it was becoming root bound. So off to the local garden store I went to buy a new home for my beloved plant. My hubby was kind enough to haul the pitiful plant down the stairs and outdoors. He helped me repot it and then he carried it back upstairs to the bathroom.

Initially I did not notice much improvement but then after about a week the plant began to come to life. For the first few years this plant was only blooming once in the summer for me. Prior to repotting it had given me two lilies at most. Well around Christmas of last year I noticed it was going to bloom again and this time it gave me three lovely lilies. Now fast forward to this summer.  Right now this wonderful plant is in its glory with—FIVE LILLIES! This five year old plant looks healthier than ever and has almost doubled in size since last fall!

So what is the point of all this you may ask? Well let me ask you a question. What if I had given up on that plant and tossed it out? What if the plant could speak and had told me it did not want to be repotted because it was happy barely surviving in its old and too small pot? What if I had listened to the plant because I did not want to “upset it” or bring it discomfort? Sounds pretty silly huh?

Well aren’t we much like that plant at times! We all have seasons where we seem stuck, cramped and just not growing in some areas. Aren’t you glad that God does not give up on us or toss us out? More important he does not listen to us if we cry about being “repotted” because he knows in the end we really have a lot of life in us if we are willing to grow into some new surroundings. Oh it may seem like the new pot is too big for you but give it time. Soon you will feel yourself stretching and growing in ways you never thought possible! So come on and give God a chance to do his best work in you. He is after all the MASTER GARDENER and he knows you will look great in green!

From my heart to yours,

Rosie <3

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

Isaiah 43:18-19