A sudden spring in March reminds the world that faithful change can come without our doing.

All of a sudden, or so it seemed, the icy crust on the lawn became a mere memory as we could see some tender green shoots joyfully piercing those hard, insistent layers.

“Oh, that’s right ... they break through in mid March here.” 

I had lost track of it.

Within days there were green "out-poppings" all around, to delight and surprise my eyes.  

When I had looked forward to spring, I had forgotten its ability to bring delight, for my mind was lulled, stuck in “same old, same old” … but spring was not stuck.

It can do it every time, even overpowering the greyness of winter that seems to infect the mind and soul at times.

Fighting through and rising up can prevail with a birdsong, without much help from us.

New life came, without my doing!

That is even more delightful. (The needed stress was generated from somewhere else.)

As I carefully put my yearly tomato supports in each place where the green was rising, I realized there were other places where I knew I had planted bulbs.  

(I had collected many bulbs from walking the dog in playing fields, which plants had been pushed into another place by tractors. The machines had pushed the flowers aside in the woods, but as they bloomed anyway, I had dug them up and brought them home to be seen.)

I came to such a place where I knew the daffies were, and raked aside some very heavy wet leaves and vines.

Sure enough, I saw a plant in a circular position, like a dog sleeping, and it was all white. Even the bud was all white. As I carefully removed vines and leaves from around this ghostly friend, the sun, which was setting, hit that bud, which by now was already heading upward.

How marvelous!

As the sun went lower, I cut down more that was blocking the sun from the bud, and went into the house ... exhilarated.

“Why am I so excited?” I wondered.

I thought of Jesus’ words about "considering the lilies, and how they grow." He did not say we would not help them in their inherent growing, but, actually, Adam was told to “tend the garden.”

Then I got it!     

His point may have also been how much He cares about every single one.

Carol Howell

Warwick