Replanted

mel96066
Mar 24
2 min read

It’s fitting to reflect on this spring, as I sip my coffee and look ahead at the silly cactus.

I’ve had it for years. Because it can get by on the God-provided sunlight and an occasional watering, it’s managed to live despite my lack of a green thumb. It sits atop a white stand in the living room all aesthetic while its bright pink blooms bring me joy.

To protect it, I had a no sports balls in the house rule. However, like many parents of athletes will understand, it was more something I said than actually enforced.

You can imagine where this is going, right?

My girls were made to play volleyball and, years ago, in one unfortunate peppering incident the ball veered sideways, clipping the planter. Within seconds, broken blue porcelain, a smattering of dirt and a sad plant lay in a pile on the floor.

To stunned to speak, I just stared at it while my girls held their breath.

“Don’t worry about it,” my always calm husband said. “It needed a bigger pot anyway.”

I took his cue and quietly joined the girls in cleaning up the mess, all the while thinking, but I really liked that blue pot. It looked so nice. Meanwhile, Charlie came in from the garage, where he’d retrieved a more sizable, unused pot. “This will be better,” he declared, repotting the plant and placing back in its spot.

I gave it a glance and felt a little less convinced. To me, it looked a little too small for its new home. And, does that pot really look as attractive?

But something started to happen.

The plant started to fill out, growing wider in all directions.

It reached taller, and the leaves matured wider.

The pot even started to grow on me.

But it didn’t bloom.

I watered it (whenever I actually remembered) with intrigue. It was still green so it had to be alive. Plus, it was thriving with growth so Charlie had to be right about its pot. Maybe you’ll just have to appreciate the green aesthetic, Melissa.

And then this year, much to my surprise,

It bloomed.

I was enamored, watching as more and more flowers opened despite seasons without.

I rotated the pot so that all would have a chance to see and be strengthened by the sun.

I reveled in its beauty.

Now I can’t look at the cactus without appreciating the truth it speaks to life. We can stunt ourselves growth when we resist change. We can default to the comforts of our surroundings rather than bravely embracing something new with the potential for better. And, we can appear dormant when God is really strengthening us for something more beautiful than we can imagine.

The question is, “When necessary for my ultimate best, am I willing to be replanted and trust God with the rest?”

Rotate to face the Son.

Flourishing awaits.

xx Melissa

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