Petals and Possibilities

I witnessed a first this week.

The campus of Trinity Western University is at the peak of spring splendor. Flower beds burst with daffodils and tulips. Lawns are lush carpets of emerald softness.  Mature cherry trees line walking paths creating a blossom canopy of brilliant, dappled sunlight. I walked through these beautiful corridors thinking, these students get to study here.

Three days later I returned to campus. The sun still shone but a strong wind whipped through the trees sending millions of petals dancing and swirling, our West Coast version of an April blizzard. Eventually the pink dots descended to the ground forming six-inch swaths along the sidewalks’ edge.

In that moment I experienced the first.

There stood a faithful maintenance worker using a leaf blower to address the fallen blooms. She corralled the exquisite debris into feather-weight piles, moving them along like three foot waves of cotton candy. I stood enthralled while others smiled and took pictures. I wish I had too.

But even without a digital capture, the image sticks with me and I have been asking the Lord what He wants to show me.

Beauty is fleeting, ran through my mind, but didn’t seem to capture a deeper meaning. So I waited.

A couple days later I caught myself trying on different interpretations of the experience and am wondering if this is the point…or at least one of them. The story could be told many ways.

I walked through a wonderland of delicate petals cascading to the ground and felt transported. Heaven must have cherry trees.

What a job to keep on top of clearing this enormous dropping of blooms. Students track them into buildings making a mess on the floors.

Individual petals are pretty. Piles of them carpet walkways creating a runway fit for royalty.

When the leaf blower hit petal mounds it effortlessly burst the pile of fluff filling the surrounding air with a cloud of loveliness. The lightness of the mass surprised me.

Good grief. My hair is full of nature.

So which line of thinking will I stick with? How will I tell my stories? How will I choose to direct my thoughts in matters big and small?

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8
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With love and gratitude,
Shelaine

PS
I made an unexpected trip to campus last night...and took a picture this time. 

​© 2016