From the Heart: The Mystery of the Flowers in the Cup

“Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.” ~Luther Burbank


For the past two or three years now, there's been a mysterious little cup filled with the most unbelievably fragrant and delicate little wild flowers that occasionally appears on our front porch.

This happens about three times a year, and I always find this precious little gift when I go out to grab our mail in the early afternoon. The little cup with flowers will be sitting there on the ledge, very humbly, with no note, just waiting to be found; and it happened once again on Valentine's Day.

Though I've yet to witness the precious soul who places that little gift there for us to find, I'm almost completely certain that it's our next door neighbors, an elderly Armenian couple that barely speak a lick of English, and that like to shuffle around their yard and share some of the pretty things that they find growing there from time to time.

Last year when I received one of these “cups of joy”, I wrote a little note with a few simple words of thanks on it along with a few hearts drawn in markers, and taped it to their front door for them to find to also gain some love from. So I do indeed hope it is them...

But ultimately, it doesn't really matter who it is. It just matters that it is.

Every time it appears, my eyes get a little welled up and a smile crosses my lips and I get the overwhelming feeling that it is God directly communicating with me...

Whenever we receive this precious and thoughtful little gift, I am so very deeply touched and filled with hope and optimism that there is still some good old-fashioned kindness and care in this world, the kind that is shared just because it is so easy to share.

It is the type of gesture that is given freely and with abandon, and with the intention to remind the one receiving it that they are being thought of fondly and that there's nothing attached other than a desire to simply bring some light and joy into their day. And I am so humbled by this.

To make it that much more special, this little cup of wild flowers always seems to come at a time when I truly need it most, when I need a little lift, and can benefit from an unexpected gesture of kindness.

Every time it appears, my eyes get a little welled up and a smile crosses my lips, and I get the overwhelming feeling that it is God directly communicating with me, reminding me that He loves and cherishes me through this precious person that bestows this gift.

This person becomes a physical manifestation of His love and His desire to provide me with unexpected light and joy, and I am so grateful that they listen, and heed His quiet prompting...

This year Valentine's Day became a little extra love-filled because of the appearance, once again, of the mysterious little cup filled with those heavenly, fragrant little flowers.

They stay in their cup, on our table, and fill our entire living room with their incredible fragrance.

And they act as reminders that there are still people in this world who enjoy sharing their love and their light freely, and who listen intently for the quiet prompting of their Creator's whisper...

Taste what's good and pass it on.

Ingrid