I'm not sure why the flower, named Cosmos, was named such. It is one of my favorites, all colors of them. Especially white and this orange variety.
I took these photos last August and the sun was pretty perfect in the Tank Garden when I took them. I gathered this basket full of just the blossoms to dry them and keep them in a jar. I've read somewhere that you can use them for dye. Plus, they are just really, really neat and I like jars full of neat things.
This morning as I found the photos and decided to post them here, a connection to the Cosmos came to me. I love Metaphors. The metaphors in life that connect us and help us understand the greater truths in Christ just blow. me. away. Truly. They speak to me strongly and I sit in awe.
There is an order to the Universe and we can be part of it. The metaphors we see are little Parables. Little bits that are more easily understood, more digestible, to use the words of my daughter, Bonnie.
So what was the metaphor that I saw in these photos?
The abundance that can occur, that can grow from sharing even just a small seed in generosity.
Almost 6 years ago, I posted about my now 92 year old gardening friend. I met her in 2013. She has shared her knowledge and her zest for life on two garden visits now. She has also shared her seeds and plant cuttings. Our visits are sparse and brief really, but what I have gained from her....abundance.
She has shared her passion for politics, her zest for the small things in life, her heart for what some may call small things, but are really big things, her garden knowledge, her confidence in who she is, and generously, seeds and plants.
And it keeps giving. I have shared seeds that I have saved from the plants of the seeds that she gave me. Her sharing has given me this post on God's abundance.
Absolute overflowing abundance.
That is what happens when we give generously.
A life metaphor from tiny cosmos seeds, shared out of generous love from the beauty a woman saw in a flower. From her awe in the Creator who made the seed.
Be sure to read my first post about her here. I also have the Cypress plants blooming here and have been saving and sharing seeds from it too.
The metaphor continues:
Every year when I plant seeds, it's the hardest thing to do. I know some will grow, but it's so hard to take the time to fiddle with the little seeds and worry that they won't grow. I would much rather plant already growing plants. But there is beauty in the process too. The struggle, overcoming the fear that I've planted them incorrectly. Will we get enough sun to germinate them? Can I keep them moist enough? Can I identify them when the markers fade or blow away because that's hard to do too? My back and legs hurt from being on my knees. Our ground is clumpy and not great soil. Can I patiently wait for the blooms?
Again...it's metaphor...all the worries in life...raising children...especially in almost all we encounter and hope for, can I patiently wait??
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such a wonderful post, I too have a neighbor who i meet when she was 87. She is now 97. She is a seamstress. I have spent the last 10 years listening to her stories of life in the south. Sharing our love of stitch. How do you dry your cosmos?
ReplyDeleteOh Jill - what a beautiful and moving post! The Bible is full of references to seeds. This is one of my favorites:
ReplyDelete1 Cor. 3:6-9 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.
Of course that wasn't referring to "seeds", but the kind of seed you just planted! The kind that grows in the heart and soul.
Your photos are superb! You give justice to God's creations, dear Jill.