Have you ever received a gift that wasn't meaningful at the time, but grew to mean so much more? When Case was born, a friend gave us a teddy bear with some flowers. It was just a small bear at the time, Case's first stuffed animal. We assumed it would be one of many, but it is the one and only. His ashes are in a locket around the bear's neck. The bear means so very much to me now.
On Mother's Day, my daughter's preschool made gifts for the moms. I imagine it was the same for every kid. 3 sunflower seeds planted, grown for a while, and brought home in a little cup. I didn't put any thought in it at the time. One of the sunflowers wasn't looking very good. I knew it wasn't going to make it. The other two looked identical. I asked her where we should plant them and we picked a spot next to our back deck. It gets full sun. The flowers would do well there.
We watered them daily. Pretty soon, one flower began sprouting up and the other was struggling. It needed a little more attention. I had to add a brace to support it so it could stand upright. It's been a month and a half now. The bigger flower recently began to bloom. The smaller one is just now beginning to grow the blossom. And as I walked by the flowers the other day, it occurred to me that they were my kids. These sunflowers tell my story of motherhood, and how interesting is that considering it was the same gift given to each mom?
I received three sprouts. I held three babies in my body.
One of the sprouts didn't make it. My sweet boy passed away.
Two of the sprouts kept growing. My girls both made it to term.
One of the sprouts did fine without any help. My oldest was term and we had no issues getting there.
The other sprout needed support to continue growing. My youngest needed intervention but made it to term as well.
I was given three sunflowers. Two are currently blooming in the garden.
