Flower of Life

     I was blessed with the opportunity to attend a retreat for the Let Me Be ministry team at the new Trilogy Retreat Center a few weeks ago. During one of the reflection times we were encouraged to walk the ground and "connect" with the property. The first things that struck me was that there were so many reminders of my youth. There was a pool, similar to one we had in the backyard growing up. The property was cut into an undeveloped area and there were wild blackberry bushes along the edges of the backyard into the woods and beyond. There was a hammock much like the one my dad always had out on the deck of the pool. The grounds reminded me of summers spent at Camp Isaac Jogues sleepover camp in Madison Ohio. The huge pines, the unrefined woods, the sounds of crickets, frogs and cicadas The pond where we used to go canoeing. 

    Then I came upon this flower, pictured above. The other side of the pond called to me. I wonder if I can walk all the way around it I thought as I started down the path. Much to my delight, I could. I saw so many interesting and beautiful natural happenings all around me. A butterfly, making its way from bush to bush led me to this flower. I've seen this flower, or one similar many times before, but never up close and personal as this day. I was fascinated by the way God created this flower. It starts out modest, a few blooms and then through no effort of its own it explodes upward according to God's plan and design. I noticed however the further upward it grows, the blossoms at the bottom begin to die off, yet it still keeps blooming upward, with no regard for the loss, almost despite the loss.

    This is so telling to me, while I started out similarly, a few modest blooms here and there, into my adult life things became a bit disordered, but I kept blooming. As I started to figure things out the initial blossoms started dying off, pushing ever upward the growth and blooms. These original blossoms almost had to die in order for new growth to emerge. These initial blooms, lost blooms, are forgotten and forgiven by God. He just keeps encouraging new growth and doesn't stop or delay it. He allows both to happen at the same time within the same flower. Holding space for both life, death and rebirth. The Paschal mystery of life, death and resurrection. Toward the middle of the flower the blossoms explode with size and growth, it seems to have hit its stride this flower, increasing 30, 60,100 fold. 

    I feel like this is where I am now, expansive growth and purposeful dying away, removing what no longer serves me or God, growing to make way for new, purposeful life, exponential blossoming, immeasurable growth.

    Although none of the plants are there yet and hopefully I am not either, the blossoms get smaller, ever so slightly to the very tip of the flower till the blooms come to an end, but never ceasing to blossom till the very last moments on earth. It reminds me of a sparkler in reverse. While a sparkler has an explosive beginning and a constant spark of brilliance as it moves down the rod it fizzles out abruptly and quickly at the end. This flower is the exact opposite of that, continuous growing, careful winnowing planned, death to the old. Constant growth and blooming upward until the last petal falls.

    All to return to itself to do it all over again next summer.