BLOOM
WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED It’s not that the daffodil in the photo below is the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, but there’s something pretty special about it, nonetheless. On one of my morning walks, I was on a trail next to a creek. I could see something yellow off in the distance beside the creek, so I walked over to see what it was. It was the double daffodil shown in the photo. I looked all around to see if there were any other daffodil plants nearby. I couldn’t find another one anywhere. There was just this one plant, standing beside the creek, isolated and completely by itself. I kind of scratched my head, wondering how this could have happened. How did a daffodil spring up in the “middle of nowhere” where there’s not another daffodil in sight? I could only come to one conclusion. The bulb of this plant had to have been transported down the creek by way of floodwaters. The flow of the creek’s current transported it to this small bend in the creek. Then silt and debris covered it, basically planting it in its place. I know you’ve heard the old saying “Bloom where you’re planted,” but here’s the best illustration of this saying I’ve ever seen. Just think about it. More than likely, the bulb of this plant went through tremendous upheaval when the rainstorm that uprooted it washed it downstream. It endured the rushing rapids. It overcame being pounded against rocks and tree limbs as the rushing current carried it further from its original home. When it finally came to its resting place, it was completely exposed to the elements – the cold of winter and the scorching afternoons of summer. 58
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But, little by little, silt and debris began to cover the bulb. Each time the creek overflowed its banks, the bulb was being covered with nutrient-rich soil. And, because it was right next to the creek, it had a constant supply of fresh water – the life’s blood of a flower. Yes, the creek that had flooded and created such a traumatic experience for the daffodil had now become its life source. All of the potential of the bulb remained intact inside its hull. With the rich soil covering it, and the creek water feeding it, it sent out its roots to establish itself upon its new foundation at
