Winter is beautiful…

As a flower farmer, I've been watching the weather, hoping and praying that the forecast of ice, snow, and bitterly cold temperatures would change, or frankly just go somewhere else.  But here we are in Plano, Texas, with three inches of sleet and snow and temperatures continuing below freezing.  Not ideal conditions to grow flowers.

When I woke up yesterday morning to a world covered in white, I was less than thrilled.  I grew up in Iowa where Winter almost always overstays its welcome and brings sub-zero windchills that penetrate deep into your bones.  Needless to say, I don't have the most pleasant opinion of Old Man Winter.

My kids, on the other hand, woke up with feelings of sheer joy and delight.  The magical white world brought shrieks of happiness and made them jump up and down with excitement.  They couldn't wait to go outside and begged to play in the snow right away.

We couldn't have had more opposite opinions about the same thing.  I was thinking about the effort it would take to bundle them all up in their warmest Texas wardrobe, stand outside in the cold while they played, and then take it all off when one of them needed to go to the bathroom or after five minutes of realizing how cold it was outside, whichever came first.  But they didn't care about any of that.  All they could see was the potential for joy and they were willing to do whatever it took to get it.

When does all of this change for us?  When do we "grow up" and make the exchange of chasing comfort instead of chasing joy?  When does stability become more desirable than spontaneity?  Is it possible to be a responsible adult while also pursuing beauty?

Thankfully, I received a glimpse into the answer to some of these questions as I bundled up to check on how well my flower covers had held up under the layers of ice, sleet, and snow.  As I took a picture of the ugly green frost cloth covering my flower bed, something else caught my eye.  The way the icicles covered the branches of a nearby bush was so intriguing to me.  I couldn't help but stare as the frozen branches glittered beautifully in the sun.  My eyes had been opened and now I was on the hunt for beauty.  

Icicles along the fence line, frozen and drooping basil branches, grasses suspended in a moment in time that resembled a crazy hairstyle.  There was beauty all around.  My dog Shelby's sweet little paw prints in the snow.  Bright red berries encapsulated by a layer of crystal clear ice.  Green daffodil sprouts peeking up through the layers of crisp white snow.  All of it was beauty.  All of it made me pause.  And all of it took my mind off the cold.

These beautiful gifts from my Creator didn't change the circumstances.  It was still Winter.  It was still cold.  And it was still too slippery to go anywhere other than right where I was.  But they did change my focus and shifted my mindset.  There is beauty to be found in any season of life if we're willing to open our eyes and receive it.  Oftentimes we have to step outside of our comfort zone (ie: my cozy warm house) to find things that make our souls come alive.

That is what flowers are in my life--a source of life, hope, and inspiration in the midst of chaos.  Something that causes me to look up and pause.  They remind me of the surpassing beauty of our Creator and remind me of deeper and more lasting purposes in life.  This mindset shift is a valuable one, especially when I get weighed down by the monotonous day-to-day routine or get blindsided by one kind of difficulty or another.

In the midst of our personal seasons of Winter, it's easy to let ourselves spiral into the depths of how unfortunate our circumstances are or how difficult this season is, but that's not where real, soul-penetrating life is found.  We must cling to faith, preserve hope, and stay rooted in love in order to weather the storms of life.  So let's keep our eyes open, be willing to endure discomfort, and generously share the beauty we've found.

Keep going and keep growing friends!

*"And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, 'Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.'" -Matthew 18:2-4

*"...looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." -Hebrews 12:2