Pink Peonies

The Joy of Pink Peonies:
Each year usually June sometimes May, like our trip to France on Mother’s Day (yes Mother’s Day). I left my kids and selfishly took a trip alone with my husband during that week. Two years ago I took this photo walking through a local flower market in Nice, France on Mother's Day where my husband, realizing how much I missed my girls, bought me a beautiful bouquet of my favorite flowers, pink peonies. They remind me of my children. No two exactly the same, and each one so incredibly beautiful in their own way, from their personalities, character and spiritual gifts to the sound of their laughter. Each one God's magnificant creation and a blessing to me.

I look forward to finding these amazing flowers at my local store every year. I've learned over the years to grab the bunch that are small closed balls vs.the partially opened blooms. Why?? Because I know what will happen over the next few days and I don’t want to miss out on any of it (a parallel in my life right now). I carefully remove some leaves and cut back the stems, arranging them in a vase shaped like a watering can that’s painted like a postcard from France.
I carry them upstairs into our bedroom and place them on my night stand. Each day the buds open up a little more until the room is filled with this incredible fragrance and the magnificent beauty of these flowers. It’s amazing to me just how much joy these flowers bring me. I’m reminded that there is still more to come. Each day I look at them and think; wow! Gorgeous! Then the next day, they are even more spectacular! Really it’s odd, but never the less, this week it’s been a huge blessing to me.

This past week has been one of the worst weeks of my life and that says a lot!
After having an unplanned (well less then 24 hrs planned) Bilateral Heart Catheterization, Pulmonary Function Tests, Ct Scans and in and out of the hospital all week, I’m reminded of the littlest of things in life that matter the most and hold such important meaning to me.

First....right after God, family is the most important thing in my life, and although some people choose to not see it that way, I always will. And ps…just because you may not be blood related; family can also be those you choose to adopt as family, for this little fact, I am grateful. The night I found out I was going in the hospital the next day, I drove straight to my self-adopted Mom’s house and climbed into her bed with her and felt the love of her arms around me telling me it was going to be okay, seems small but it was huge to me.

Second… friends are a gift in my life that humble me with their sincerity and support. My friends that have come and gone in my life are dearly missed and oh how I wished they were still around this past week more then ever. They will always be in my heart even though there is a hole in it, literally.

Third....things could be worse. My flowers are a reminder of simplicity, authenticity, joy and hope. I know every year in some field they will bloom again and find their way to my local store and into my life.