Monday, September 26, 2022

A Gift for You - A Flower and A Poem

 

 

Flowers today are from a recent visit to Lan Su Chinese Gardens. This lotus was stunning.

 

How It Is

Over and Over we break

open, we break and

we break and we open.

For a while, we try to fix

the vessel - as if

to be broken is bad.

As if with glue and tape

and a steady hand we

might bring things to perfect

again. As if they were ever

perfect. As if to be broken is not

also perfect. As if to be open

is not the path toward joy.

The vase that's been shattered

and cracked will never

hold water. Eventually

it will leak. And at some

point, perhaps, we decide

that we're done with picking

our flowers anyway, and no

longer need a place to contain them.

We watch them grow just

as wildflowers do - unfenced, 

unmanaged, blossoming only

when they're ready - and mygod,

how beautiful they are amidst

the mounting pile of shards.

~Rosemary Wahtola Trommer

Japanese anemone were in full bloom in the garden,but they are also blooming in my garden at home.

As in the poem, a flower blooms only when it is ready to bloom. Do we likewise bloom when we are ready? And yes, there is a part of brokenness in life that allows the light to shine through the cracks and make us more beautiful. I think, for me, it is a hard lesson that I continue to learn.
 

Have a beautiful week, dear friends!

4 comments:

Jeanie said...

Both the photo and the poem are beautiful and I really appreciate your insightful comments, which say it all. Lovely in every way, Marilyn.

Red Rose Alley said...

Your words are so true about brokenness, Marilyn. The light surely can shine through the cracks. You know, I have a thing about broken or chipped items, and used to toss them instantly once they broke. But then years ago, I got to thinking that they are similar to us, and that we are broken in many ways. But we are still beautiful. So like you, I am learning, dear friend. Thank you for your wonderful "A Flower and A Poem" posts each week.

~Sheri

Carrie @ Cottage Cozy said...

That is such a beautiful garden - I haven't visited there for awhile ♥

Lorrie said...

Lots to think about in the poem, and in your words accompanying it.