23 December 2011

Like a Violet in the Snow

When I was growing up, there was a song sung at church this time of year entitled, "Like a Violet In the Snow." It was originally a poem by Charles Bukowski, but was later turned into a song by Don Mayhew (recorded by Carey Landy).
The recurring line in the song reads:
"SO MANY YEARS AGO, IN BETHLEHEM A
BABY CAME LIKE A VIOLET IN THE SNOW."

Keep that in mind as I continue with this post.
I have a lily garden in our backyard, surrounding a small pond. In that lily garden we have Lily of the Nile, Easter Lily, Day Lily, Narcissus, Calla Lily...and a very special lily I was told was named the Passion Lily. My mother later told me that when she was growing up, they called them the St. Joseph Lily. This lily looks very much like an Easter Lily, except that they are a deep red. No matter WHEN Holy Week is celebrated on the calender, they  ALWAYS bloom sometime between Palm/Passion Sunday and Easter Sunday. Even the year we moved and transplanted them, they bloomed at the appointed time. No matter if Holy Week was the 3rd week in March or the last week in April...just like clockwork, they bloomed. Well, this week, I had one of the Passion Lillies or St. Joseph Lillies in my garden BLOOM! What was that? I immediately started hearing the song above in my head. How fitting that the week before Christmas, these Passion Lillies would also bloom.

How does this enter into the realm of being an Aspie mom? Well, it doesn't really...except that we have to find joy in our lives....see it and recognize it for what it is....a gift. Whether it is a flower unexpectedly blooming, a moment of peace in the home, an opportunity for your child when you thought doors had been closed, a chance to witness your Aspie son being respected (let alone included), an instance when your Aspie child looks you in the eye and tells you that he loves you.....they are all gifts! Sometimes seemingly as rare and as precious as a violet in the snow.

"SO MANY YEARS AGO, IN BETHLEHEM A
BABY CAME LIKE A VIOLET IN THE SNOW"

And that violet, that flower, went on to suffer through His Passion for us.....
What a Christmas Gift...

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