Here is a small thing that I found in my garden today.
It doesn’t belong there. It’s just a weed, winding its way into my garden from the ever-moving, encroaching woods. There are a million of these things out there. I rip them out without thinking of anything but the tomatoes I planted, that are ripening somewhere in the forest of weeds.
“Stop!” one of my kids yelled in dismay. He had come to keep me company. “Don’t pull the Elephants!”
“What? What elephants?”
“Mom! That thing in your hand! You’re ripping out the beautiful Elephants!”
I stopped and took a closer look.
“See Mom? Two big ears, and a trunk? These are baby elephants! Don’t pull them out, they’re my favorite.”
He ran off to play, and I was left, standing in the weeds, thinking.
Admiring the elephants.
Why hadn’t I seen these before? How could I miss these magnificent elephants, living right in my front garden?
Each flower is only about a centimeter across. They grow on thin vines, tangling all through my garden. I just dismissed them as weeds, never taking time to look more closely. But now, I was seeing things through my child’s eyes. He sees the world differently, more clearly. His sight is not clouded by experience and utilitarianism.
He sees only wonder and magnificence.
It’s right here, all around us. Wonder and Magnificence. The God who created you and me is an artist who cares, right down to the intricate details. This tiny, unnoticed elephant flower living in obscurity in my garden is living proof of the Creator’s love and care for us. Wow. Kids see things so clearly. Life is so rich and beautiful when I have someone to help me see it.
I’m going to check for elephants in my living room now…
It doesn’t belong there. It’s just a weed, winding its way into my garden from the ever-moving, encroaching woods. There are a million of these things out there. I rip them out without thinking of anything but the tomatoes I planted, that are ripening somewhere in the forest of weeds.
“Stop!” one of my kids yelled in dismay. He had come to keep me company. “Don’t pull the Elephants!”
“What? What elephants?”
“Mom! That thing in your hand! You’re ripping out the beautiful Elephants!”
I stopped and took a closer look.
“See Mom? Two big ears, and a trunk? These are baby elephants! Don’t pull them out, they’re my favorite.”
He ran off to play, and I was left, standing in the weeds, thinking.
Admiring the elephants.
Why hadn’t I seen these before? How could I miss these magnificent elephants, living right in my front garden?
Each flower is only about a centimeter across. They grow on thin vines, tangling all through my garden. I just dismissed them as weeds, never taking time to look more closely. But now, I was seeing things through my child’s eyes. He sees the world differently, more clearly. His sight is not clouded by experience and utilitarianism.
He sees only wonder and magnificence.
It’s right here, all around us. Wonder and Magnificence. The God who created you and me is an artist who cares, right down to the intricate details. This tiny, unnoticed elephant flower living in obscurity in my garden is living proof of the Creator’s love and care for us. Wow. Kids see things so clearly. Life is so rich and beautiful when I have someone to help me see it.
I’m going to check for elephants in my living room now…
RSS Feed
