Sunflowers



Three of my sunflower seeds broke ground yesterday.

I planted 14 seeds 2 weeks and 2 days ago. It felt like so long since I had planted them that I was beginning to believe that they would never grow.

If you read my post "Building Camelot" you know what the sunflowers mean to me.

In the weeks after my Grandfather died, ordering those seeds and digging the beds for them brought me great comfort.

These are not just flowers to me. These are Hope in seed form.

Somehow, with water and dirt, these tiny seeds have grown into a living thing. It's such a miracle. In a few months, they will be taller than I am- and they live off of sunlight! It sounds like a fairy tale.

Sometimes I marvel at the world God has made.

I wrote a Haiku to honor the tiny sunflower plants' birthday. I read it to them and sang "Happy Birthday."

Sunflower Hope.

A bursting green bud

Breaking through the dark wet soil

My sunflower seed grows hope.


I have to resist the urge to help the seedlings along; I want to reach out and brush the dirt off of them and lift their leaves out of the ground. But I know I shouldn't. They need to struggle so that they will grow strong. They need to fight to live or they will never grow tall.

I wonder if this is how God feels about us? He would like to spare us the pain and the struggle, but He won't, because He knows we need the fight, or we will never blossom.

Photo Credit: http://weddingtypesofflowersguide.blogspot.com/

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 26, 2010 at 9:03 AM

    That Haiku is beautiful and the thoughts behind it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. RyanMay 26, 2010 at 11:49 AM

    Well done, I know this can take a lot of patience. Hopefully with time all of your seeds will grow tall and proud.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sandra Rose HughesMay 26, 2010 at 3:30 PM

    Thank you, Ryan and Carole Anne. I appreciate your support. Imagine my chagrine when I realized that I made the last line of my Haiku 7 syllables instead of 5. It should read:
    A bursting green bud
    breaking through the dark wet soil
    sunflowers grow hope.

    ReplyDelete
  4. klahanieMay 27, 2010 at 4:21 PM

    And as a every seed grows; we realise the wonder of new hope in the blossom of the sunflower.
    Thanks for sharing a lovely Haiku.
    With respect and kindness, your way, Gary

    ReplyDelete
  5. mamasitaMay 27, 2010 at 9:50 PM

    I like your haiku,before you know it you will have a forest of sunflowers and then the fun really begins because you will have a flock, gaggle, murder or whatever of birds to watch and enjoy.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Randy4jesusMay 29, 2010 at 1:19 AM

    Isn't it amazing that God can be seen in the simplest things?

    ReplyDelete

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