Tag Archives: nature

Why Easter Lilies Symbolize New Beginnings

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Hello again my beloveds! It’s been a minute, but here we are. I don’t know where the time is going! I just can’t seem to wrap my brain around blogging lately. There has been plenty of opportunity, but very little motivation. Maybe it’s the weather. It’s raining — again. This spring has been very, very wet. The ground is wet, the firewood is wet, my bunnies are damp, and no one is happy. Although a few things have been slowly moving forward… we have fence posts in for the new baby goats! And spring day old chicks come tomorrow! So, despite not being able to do much around because everything is soaking… time continues to move on. I suppose it is one thing we simply cannot stop: Time. Even in the rain.

I wanna go back in time for a minute. A few weeks ago, we celebrated one of, if not the most significant events in history. Easter. It was an unusual Easter weekend for us… kinda busy with a lot of travelling to see family (which are further away now), but nonetheless wonderful. Easter, of course, is when we commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus. A poignant celebration in Christian faith. We’re still getting used to our bigger church and a larger church family, so it wasn’t as “intimate” as I’m used to, but worthy of mentioning. Chocolate treats and fancy meals with family notwithstanding.

Easter and Lilies

Yet, we must circle back to our little plant theme we’re currently following, and chat about Easter lilies. Our sanctuary was decorated with them, and we used to have many in the city. So, how did the lily get associated with Easter? I didn’t know. So, like all good bloggers, I googled it. Google tells me the trumpet shaped, white flower has been traditionally associated with purity, rebirth and new beginnings. The shape reminds us of a trumpet… announcing the resurrection of Christ and His return. Obviously, new beginnings are what spring is all about… so it makes sense. A pure white flower. Okay, I get it.

Honestly though, I am not a fan of Easter lilies. I do not like their very pungent fragrance, they are extremely toxic to pets, and are messy…dropping pollen everywhere. Plus, they remind me of death. I don’t know why, but they seem to be in every funeral bouquet. I suppose it has something to do with that hope reborn association. Sorry to those of you who love ’em — just not for me. Any lily, in fact. Crazy tiger lilies in my garden… you can’t kill those invasive things! Please do not bring me any for mother’s day!

I suppose I shouldn’t be so harsh to a flower that the Bible mentions as beautiful (Luke 12) and is a symbol for purity. Solomon, in all his finest, never looked as good as the humble, white flower, they say. I suppose it is pretty enough. More partial to the rose, myself. I knew a lady who loved the lilies and all the mismatching and hybrids and colour varieties. She ordered bulbs on a regular basis for her garden. I have a few daylilies that are okay hanging out in mine, but the lily is not one I’d pick to plant.

However, I did find one tidbit of info interesting. The life cycle of an Easter lily begins with the bulb growing underground for several years before sprouting its long stalk and white flower. A perfect example of death and resurrection… buried under ground and rebirth. That is worth celebrating. That can bring meaning to spring. Especially right now for us, after a brutally long winter and a very rainy spring. I am ready for some new life again. I am ready for a new awakening in the soil and the garden sprouting. I’m excited for the new babies coming and the joy new life brings. That, my friends, is even worth a stinky flower. I hope you feel a rebirth in your souls this week, my beloveds! Until we “meet” again.

Navigating Life’s Pathways: Lessons from a Spider

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Greetings, friends! It’s been a hot moment, hasn’t it? We’re back though, with another thought of the day to enlighten you. I was finally taking a moment to relax in the bath, when a teenie little daddy long legged spider decided to meander its way along the side of my tub. Now, I don’t have any fear of spiders, especially one so small, but I didn’t want this little guy to fall into my bath, or worse, disappear from view, so I gently scooped him up and placed him along the edge of my dangling English ivy (which I am so proud of… it’s growing well on my bathroom window ledge…long and sprawling… I am hoping to weave it all through the mirror). Anyway, I placed the little guy along the edge of the vine, hoping he would follow the path into the heart of the plant and live happily eating the fruit flies or whatever little gnat things live in soils. He did not. He made a quick veer to the right, grasping at the smooth painted bathroom wall to start his ascent. Once he slipped and slid along the wall, he had to spot check a few pieces of web to swing over the window ledge. I didn’t watch him after that. I don’t know if he every made it to the plant, or the sunny window, or simply slid down the other side under the sink and whatever lurks under there.

Which pathway to choose?

And so… you guessed it… I mused about that little spider and wondered why on earth did he choose the more treacherous path when I clearly had shown him the easiest route? The quickest definition of a pathway is “a way that constitutes or serves as a path” — it says nothing of the difficulty of the pathway, nor the length of the route, nor the dangers along it. It is simply a “way” from point A to point B. Plenty of us have traveled along many a pathway — both easy and hard routes in our lifetimes. They are worth a thought and a look back to see how far we have come.

Most of you know, it has been a hard, long, cold, snowy winter here at Itsnotta Farm. The snow is still deep on the ground, the days are still bitterly cold, and my farm chores are tough. Gates are frozen open, two feet deep in snow. Entry ways to the barn are icy because when it did warm up for a few brief days, the snow melted. The barn is a skating rink. I need to clean out my stall bound bunnies, but everything is frozen to the ground. One day, the wind created huge drifts enroute to the coop, I was waste deep and shoveling my way along. I bump my head on the top of the chicken run because the snow has lifted me up a foot or so taller. Goat fencing can’t be started because the ground is solid and still buried. Needless to say, I think we are quite sick of it all! Spring could not come sooner.

Photo by Anurag Jamwal on Pexels.com

Metaphorically speaking, we’ve been on a few pathways since moving out here. Adjusting to the weather was just one. We’ve had new schools, church, made new friends in a new community. I’ve been given several job opportunities and navigated that trajectory for awhile. Life is a seemingly endless pathway. And then you die. My faith would tell me that that isn’t the final checkpoint, though. The Bible tells us the pathway to Heaven is narrow and tough going. It’s a hard one to choose. Like my little spider, the challenges are real and sluggish. Choices we make now, will determine our fate. Is it worth the slow, arduous route to arrive in Heaven and eternal life? You bet it is!

I don’t know where you are, friend, on your pathway through life. I don’t know who reads my little public posts, or who shares them and why. I do know, God is faithful. He’s proven it time and time again. People around us try and set us on the path that is easy… one with few obstacles, an easy climb through the ivy. Sometimes, the sacrifice is worth the harder route. Sometimes, we need to plant ourselves and haul up over the ledge. It’ll be a bit more difficult for sure. Oh, we’ll have a few blessings along the way… someone will surely scoop us up every now and then and keep us from drowning; but it will all be worth it in the end. Trust me. Spring thaw is coming, and the pathways will soon be green again! And there will be plenty more spiders to watch.

Winter Reflections: Finding Hope Beneath the Snow

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Welcome back. It is another snow day here. I hear parts of Russia are worse off, their snow piles are as high as the street lights! No comparison here, but another snow day, nonetheless. We are Canada — known for the snow. I guess Russia is, too, though. I cannot image further up north. Brrrr. I shiver to even go there. Alas, I can only speak for us, and here, no school buses are running and we are still digging out. Our back door is completely blocked from the snow falling off our roof. The bar-b-que and garden hose are completely buried. Yes, we left the garden hose out because we didn’t get to it before the snow came. I suppose we will deal with that in spring. Don’t hate on us. We’ve also had to move our recycling and garbage bins to the front door because the snow is piled so high.

The view from our back door.

The girls have been locked up in their coop for days. Okay, they are not locked up… they have the ability to go out, but they do not like the white stuff and I have not seen them venture since you could see grass on the ground. I am sure they are bored to tears. The rabbits, too, are locked up in the (warmer) barn. They need some real sunlight. At least they are getting along so they can be out together.

The children and myself are pretty housebound, too, these days. I cleaned out the pantry the other day. Later today I may tackle a closet. It’s been bitterly cold so I have to go out to refresh water for the creatures, but other than that… where is there to go? I have no money to spend. Work, of course. Hubby is still commuting. Highways seem to be okay. Kudos to our snow clearing folk. They are earning their keep this year!

Yet, there is always another side to the winter blahs. The moon was beautiful last night as I tucked everyone in. A clear, sliver of silver against the black silhouettes of our little forest. I see from posts the Northern Lights were spotted again in our area. It was quiet and peaceful. The snow crunch crunched under my feet. The stars were out on the black sky. A gentle reminder of good things in the middle of the rest of the hardships of winter. I changed my letter board from my Christmas greeting:

So, where is my reflection leading us to today? I was imagining spring. I ordered another batch of chicks to hatch for April! I’m looking forward to when all this snow melts, but dreading what we may uncover underneath. The dog dug up a hockey puck the other day. I’m sure there are several dog tennis balls out there in the field… and, um, other dog “presents” that will soon be coming to the surface when we dig out. I was thinking about being buried. Not in the literal sense, as in when you’re dead, but buried alive.

I love the television show Hoarders. They used to call it Hoarders, Buried Alive. Where people are literally buried in their stuff. Clothes, bags, paper, trash and who knows what, piled to the ceilings of homes. Other times it’s animals and a collection that has got out of hand. I get that need to nurture. The folks usually have good intentions, but get too caught up and get overwhelmed. It’s sad, but the show aims to help, I suppose. Working to clean up and clear out… with promises to work through the mental health and triggers that get folks in that sort of trouble. Good people who struggle.

Which sums up quite a few of us. Good people who struggle. Perhaps we are not buried alive by our physical stuff, but many, many people carry such heavy burdens today. Wayward family. Health crisis, unemployment, or just simple hurts that weigh heavy on our hearts. Perhaps this winter weather makes it worse. Locked up like my chickens, just eating and getting chunky. Or needing sunshine, or to see the clear sky on a cool night, like my bunnies.

Waiting for spring….

If you’re feeling it today, friend, know that I am hearing you. I trust I will be #gracious (as my my year intention leads) to those who need it. To my self when I need it. To lead others to Jesus when I cannot do it by myself. To allow winter rest to rejuvenate our souls instead of bury them. Spring eventually comes. Hope is there. Reach for it, yearn for it, seek to find it. Then come here to join me in the journey. I got you!