Sunday, May 23, 2010

The tulip story

One year ago, the day after Faith had gone to Heaven (a Sunday much like this one), a close friend of mine called me to ask if she could pick up some flowers for Faith's funeral. "What kind?" she asked. I answered without hesitation. "Tulips," I said. "Pink and white tulips." When my mother overheard this, she asked me why I didn't just pick the pink and white tulips from our garden. "We have pink and white tulips?" I asked. "Yes," my mother said and told me to go look out their bedroom window. Sure enough, in the corner of our backyard was a little garden of pink and white tulips in full bloom. My parents explained that the tulips were a gift from my grandparents, were planted in the fall and bloom for only a short time. I knew in that moment that this was no coincidence. God had planned it all along. "My parents gave them to me, I'm giving them to you, and tomorrow you can give them to Faith," said my father.

One year later, this same little garden has yielded beautiful pink and white tulips in memory of our dear sweet Faith. It is hard to believe that a year has passed since Faith went to Heaven. No amount of time can heal my wounds, but God's grace is sufficient for me. Thank you, Lord, for these little reminders of your love.