These are the BEAUTIFUL flowers my kids and I bought on Earth Day to plant in front of our house.  Since we’ve gone through many hard times of unemployment, through seasons when we couldn’t even afford to pay our own bills, buying these 7 little plants was a HUGE treat.  It felt like Christmas in April!

  For the past few days we’ve been weeding (really- it was much worse before) and enjoying the rain as the soil was prepared by Mother Nature.  Today I finally got around today to digging some holes and doing some planting.

As I dug that hole I couldn’t help but get lost in the thought of how much possibility there is in a hole.  Seriously. Which flower should go in that spot? What should I do with that space? What’s going to happen…right…here…?

Often holes are looked at as negative, at least as far as our emotions go.  When we’ve been hurt and someone is gone there can be pain.  When we stop being part of something we loved, there’s a vacancy, a void.  But there’s also an opening to possibilities.  There’s also a beautiful chance for something new and better.  I’ve spent a lot of time lately being caught up in the challenges from my past, mourning lost time, opportunities, and just remembering painful experiences.  I’ve been lost in fear for the future, based on the past.  But thinking that way is as silly as being sad that last years flowers are no longer here blooming when I have a bunch of lovely new ones to plant.  Every day I have new opportunities for beauty, growth and enjoyment!  True, these plants could die.  But I shouldn’t let that possibility take away the joy they bring me now!  I can cross that bridge if and when it comes.  And if it does, I will use my receipt to get new ones since they’re guaranteed for a year. 😉

As for life, sometimes it’s scary to trust again and try to fill that hole with something new.  But it would be much more sad to leave all those holes empty.  What kind of garden of existence would that be?  And in all honesty, there probably will be some plants that don’t last.  People will inevitably let us down eventually.  Things don’t go as planned.  But that just means there are more holes to fill again, with something new and beautiful.  I don’t say this lightly, because trusting and having hope can be a challenge.  I say it because I know keeping a bunch of holes vacant because you’re afraid to fill them means having a very empty life.

Choose to see possibilities. Choose to see beauty. Choose to see spring in the midst of winter.

Choose to plant again. With God, I know all things are possible.