Who am I?

I am the keeper of journals…

Words I wrote on scraps of paper.

Dreams I dreamt in the still of the night…

The sunrise I kept safe within my heart.

Some pages scattered, some words blurred

in the margins of my life.

Sometimes, I try to chase after them…

Silly me.

None of the pages are lost…

At night, the pages of my life glimmer

in the silvery light beneath the stars.

In the morning, a new page awaits…

More glitter to come, fused in a dawn

full of promise, full of hope.

Isaiah 40:31: “But those that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.”

The Month of July

July has been a catch-up month! We were away much of June, and the gardens languished without proper care. Now, in July, the rains have come, watering the earth in a most wondrous way. The weeds are also delighted with the heavy rain and have made a resplendent comeback.

My oldest granddaughter helped me with weeding the front gardens. She planted a wildflower garden with me that should bloom in early autumn. I loved her enthusiasm! She sprinkled all the seeds and then exclaimed, “Grandma, there will be so many flowers!”

It is a nice thing to think about, a garden ready to bloom before the cold weather rushes in, in those last sunny days of autumnal bliss.

Winter will come. The yard will boast some ceramic statues in the gardens. The snow will cover the gardens…both the flowers and the most stubborn of weeds.

This is the story of life, is it not? The flowers grow beside the weeds, and our heartaches are edged within the most beautiful of moments. What are we to do?

Do we focus on the summer blooms, almost too beautiful to comprehend? Do we focus on the weeds, always at hand, a reminder that life on this earth will never be perfect?

I thank God for my children, and my children’s children, who teach me not to miss the beauty of a single day, a single hour. We are not promised tomorrow in this lifetime, save for heaven, which is forever.

Today is but a brushstroke in the Kingdom of Heaven, and yet, the heavenly strokes are here with us today. How beautiful is the canvas of life, the souls we have loved, the doors we have opened.

I pray as I go forward in this life, to keep opening the doors my Heavenly Father has graced for me to open. I cannot see what is on the other side of the door as I have not yet crossed through. I trust His passage before I ever take a step. I know that He is there waiting for me on the other side.

Yes, the summer blooms of life are magnificent, but so are the blooms that fade into autumn, the blooms that live within our hearts.

May it be that we cherish all the blooms our Heavenly Father has gifted us with. May we surrender our need to know what all of it means in this present hour, in this present time.

Life is a gift, each passing moment, each and every person that we have ever loved. It is a bouquet blessed by our Heavenly Father, one we shall carry into eternity.

The weeds of life are with us always, the hurts, the pains, the broken places within us. We must look past the weeds to the joy only Christ can bring to our hearts. Every day, we step out into the garden of life. Every day, there are blooms we encounter that need tending, blooms we have forgotten, blooms that need our love.

The garden of life is a wondrous place…and wherever we go, God goes before us. We need not fear the garden path. I may have gardening chores to ‘catch-up’ on, but God has no trouble ‘catching-up’ with me. He knows who I am and He knows where I am at all times.

Isaiah 43:1: “I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.”

This is not my garden, but I hope my wildflower garden one day resembles this one! Photo taken outside of the Buxton Village Books bookstore, in Buxton, North Carolina.)

Summer Blooms! Photo taken outside of the Buxton Village Books bookstore. (What could be nicer, flowers and books, in the most charming little bookstore ever!)

Butterflies! (My garden, a few summers ago…)

I hope all of you are enjoying these summertime days…We have had some cooler weather here in Virginia and that has been wonderful. Tomorrow begins a new month!!! Wishing you blessings…little reasons to celebrate, time set apart to enjoy the simple things. Already, the stores are full of autumnal decor, and some places have Christmas items on display. I do want to savor summer a little bit longer…