A few weeks ago my husband and I noticed a small sunflower about 2 feet tall-growing along the fence line. We try each year to plant a row of them. The past two years time slipped away and we didn’t get it done. When we do plant them they tower over our yard, some as high as eight feet. They are a haven for the birds and a play ground for the squirrels who scampered from one flower to another by vaulting from leaf to leaf.
We were blessed this year with a special gift, one lone sunflower that grew from a seed the squirrels and birds missed. For me it was about taking a spiritual journey each time I gazed out the window to check on the mini sunflower. I check on it every day.
I took a break from my writing this morning to see how it fared the cold weather we had last night. To my surprise it was still standing but as always had ducked under the fence support for shelter. In addition to being reassured it had weathered the cold I found a sharp shinned hawk sitting on my critter cafe(that’s a fence mounted bird feeder for the squirrels and at night the raccoons) holding on to a rodent. Beautiful bird with breakfast in tow.
It’s amazing what we can learn from nature that is spiritually based. This small seed weathered all types of challenges from the weather and not being consumed by a passing squirrel or bird or being poisoned by weed killer our neighbor up the lane sprays. Where it landed and started to grow not only provided the sun that it needs but it was next to the fence support. The benefit was shelter from the torrential rains and strong winds. As the weather began to cool and frost threatened it would cuddle underneath the green fence brace and blend right in with its beautiful golden bloom closed in prayer for the night.
The spiritual lesson in this for me has been focused on faith, trust, perseverance and resilience. The sunflower represented me. The fence support became God. Despite the challenges that were presented to this small seed; it grew and flourished. It had the sun and rain it needed to become the mini sunflower it was intended to be. A decision made long before it broke the earth’s crust to be born. God does the same for us. He never promises that we won’t have challenges in this life. He does reaffirm that he is here to help, all we need to do is ask. So people don’t feel that he answers us. I’ve heard people complain about not receiving what they wanted and they prayed, they prayed really hard! Nothing. I use to be one of those people. The problem is we don’t quiet our minds and our lives long enough to hear his answer. We are way too busy with our work or blaming someone else for our failures or lack of self-esteem. We are too busy acquiring material things to try to fill the void in our lives. Some turn to drugs, alcohol and other addictions to try to ease the pain. We hold on to past grievances that we don’t realize are highly toxic.; think about the weed killer my neighbor sprays envision it as words thoughts or something written. We are lost and we wonder if we’ll ever find the way.
Just about everyone has a spiritual side, sometimes we share the same beliefs and other times we are at opposite ends of the spiritual spectrum. That’s okay as long as we respect one another.
If you haven’t taken some time to connect with your beliefs lately give it a try. I need only look out my window to the message God has given me to face my most recent challenge. It gives me hope. Against all odds the little sunflower grew and survived. Each day I go out to gaze upon this miracle and I am reminded how the two of us are alike. We both have God caring for us. No matter what the outcome may be, we know we are serving a greater purpose.
