Consider the lesson of the asparagus: Bloom where we are planted
#UpliftingMessage
“Truly charity has no limit; for the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Spirit dwelling in each one of us, calling us to a life of devotion and inviting us to bloom in the garden where God has planted and directing us to radiate the beauty and spread the fragrance of God’s Providence.”
~ Saint Francis de Sales
During this time of “May flowers”, let us remember to “bloom where we are planted.”
Consider the lesson of asparagus, a crop grown in the Pacific Northwest. It is one of the earliest harvests in our area and grows in soil saltier than other plants can withstand. It requires patience as it takes two to four years before the roots are mature enough to produce sustainable harvests.
In early spring vigorous spears grow seven inches a day and continually produce fresh harvests across the six-to-eight-week season. Later the plant sprouts a fern-like structure that stores carbohydrates back into the root for the next year’s cycle.
A mature asparagus can produce twenty-five years of tender spears each spring!
Consider the lesson of the asparagus
- Reflecting on our own life, what soil conditions nurtured us?
- Was our early development in rich dark soil, or in clay, sand, rock, or salt?
- How did love nourish the roots of our growth?
- Who showed extraordinary patience as we matured?
- When have been our periods of vigorous growth?
- How have periods of dormancy prepared us for new growth?
Reflecting on our community
- What would it mean to “bloom where we are planted” in our home, neighborhood, workplace, and city?
- How are we amending communal soil so that others may flourish?
- What fragrance permeates those places from God’s abundance in our collective life?
- How could love for our locale change us?
- How might we radiate beauty to others?
Rev Sybrant has a Masters in Divinity, Social Work, and a Doctor of Ministry. For more information, visit us at 15050 SW Weir Road, www.murrayhills.org | 503-524-5230
