God's Gifts

The visitors who come to my flowers bring me joy.

Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds flit from flower to flower.

They search for the sweet nectar.

Like these creatures, people go from one thing to another 

looking for the next best thing.

That's natural for the bugs and birds, but for people, it's exhausting.

Take time to stop and experience God's gifts.

Seek to be satisfied by His love and grace.

 

Natural Beauty

This eastern tiger swallowtail swooped
around the purple coneflowers,
when I was watering plants the other day.

Imagine, the same God who created people, 
crafted this beautiful creature
who floats from flower to flower
and provides a way for pollen to move
where it needs to,
and we get to enjoy the show.

Thank you God for the beauty you've given us.

What natural beauty have you spotted lately?

The Butterfly

One thing the children in my daughter's class love to watch 

is a caterpillar's process of spinning a chrysalis, 

sleeping for a time, and emerging a butterfly.

God created those lumpy, bumpy caterpillars 

to go through a metamorphic change

and come out graceful and colorful creatures.

As I've gotten older and hopefully wiser, 

I realize that the dark times I've gone through

have helped me learn to rely on God more 

and be a kinder, more loving person in the end.

I may not be a graceful butterfly, 

but I am a child of God covered by His grace.

 

In His Arms

Summer flowers nod in the sunshine.

As I watered my little garden the other day, I admired the bees 

and butterflies that flitted about.

The bees nuzzled into the blossoms and sucked nectar into 

a little sac on their body called a crop.

Those little creatures took refuge in the buds until they filled up on the sweetness.

When I seek refuge in God's arms, 

I rest there until I fill up on his love and peace.

When life is hard, seek shelter in God's arms.

 

Historical Fiction Review: A Mosaic of Wings by Kimberly Duffy

Book Description:
It's 1885, and all Nora Shipley wants, now that she's graduating from Cornell University as valedictorian of the entomology program, is to follow in her late father's footsteps by getting her master's degree and taking over the scientific journal he started. The only way to uphold her father's legacy is to win a scholarship, so she joins a research expedition in Kodaikanal, India, to prove herself in the field.

India isn't what she expects, though, and neither is the rival classmate who accompanies her, Owen Epps. As her preconceptions of India--and of Owen--fall away, she finds both far more captivating than she expected. Forced by the expedition leader to stay at camp and illustrate exotic butterflies the men of the team find without her, Nora befriends Sita, a young Indian girl who has been dedicated to a goddess against her will.

In this spellbinding new land, Nora is soon faced with impossible choices--between saving Sita and saving her career, and between what she's always thought she wanted and the man she's come to love.

My Review:
This intriguing story unfolds like butterfly wings. As Nora fights to make a name for herself in the scientific community and struggles to find her footing in the male dominated world of entomology, she discovers what it means to make difficult choices. Duffy's mastery of words and in-depth research weaves the beautiful and the arduous together like a stunning tapestry, as Nora finds her way. The author uses technical names for the creatures Nora encounters, which adds to the picture of Nora's beautiful, intelligent character. I enjoyed the push and pull between Nora and Owen and the gorgeous settings of both Ithaca, NY and India. If you love adventure, romance, and women's fiction, you'll want to read A Mosaic of Wings. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

From Caterpillar to Butterfly

2 Corinthians 3:16-18

But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.  And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Blue Morpho butterflies, the size of my hand, darted around Krohn Conservatory. They flashed their iridescent blue wings in every corner of the tropical dome. My grandkids, Eli and Ella Cate, watched in awe at the many varieties of butterflies that dipped in and out of our path.

On the way to the conservatory, I read a book to the kids. It was all about a caterpillar who was learning to become a butterfly. The whole process tested his patience. Once he figured out that he had to spend time in his chrysalis in order to sprout colorful wings and fly, he embraced his quiet dwelling and waited.

Reflecting on the story of the impatient caterpillar reminds me that I'm in a chrysalis, a place to grow and change in Jesus. Once I chose to follow Jesus and claim him as my Savior, I started the transformation journey. Each day that I proclaim my faith, I change a little more. Being a Christ-follower is a process. I have the Holy Spirit in my life, who helps me transform. He gives me guidance and wisdom, comfort and hope while I live on earth. Like the blue morpho, one of these days I will burst from my shell, then I'll stand in heaven with God, as a new creation. One who is fully transformed, because of God's grace.

The caterpillar feet were gone, the wings unfolded.

One should never lose hope! - Tomas TranstrÖmer

Incredible Beauty

My friend, Wendy, posed a question on Facebook last week. "What part of nature reminds you that you're cared for [by God]?" I sent back my reply after a few minutes.

Truth be told, most everything about nature reminds me of how much God loves me.  I sit on my back porch and see how he takes care of the birds, such amazing, aerodynamic, little creatures. In the woods, I see the trees that tower over me. I admire their photosynthetic system that guides them through the seasons. At the beach I watch the tide roll in and out due to the gravitational pull from the sun and moon. I could go on because so much of our amazing earth, the place God created for us to live, reminds me how much God cares.

So what part of nature reminds me how much God is concerned about me? 

Flowers and butterflies. 

I could watch butterflies all day, as they flit from lavender to roses to daisies. When flowers spring from the ground, I can't wait to see them grow and bloom. 

Both have an incredible beauty for which only God could be responsible. Both depend on each other. Both rely on other parts of creation, like rain and sun. Both bring me peace. When I see a butterfly in the flowers, I feel like I've found a treasure.

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these." -Matthew 6:27-29

How about you? What part of nature reminds you that you are cared for? 

Mt. Airy Forest Arboretum