Delightful Surprises

It gives me great pleasure to surprise people with something unexpected. A card, a book, a packet of cookies, a gift for no reason. Or even a gift for a reason. I wait in eager anticipation of their reaction, their delight, their basking in the knowledge that someone loves them and was thinking of them.

Many years ago, I purchased a small lilac bush, as lilacs are one of my favorite flowers and one of the first flowers to bloom and herald the full onset of spring and the promise of summer. I planted this lilac bush in remembrance of a dearest loved one who had passed away earlier that year and felt a twang ​

of the bittersweet each year as it bloomed: sadness in the memory of why it was planted and happiness in the promise of what was to come.

In later years, it was destroyed – not as an act of malice – but by one who had no idea of its significance and simply thought it to be a “pesky bush”.

During the winter months of this year, my family moved to a new-to-us home. The only recognizable tree was the evergreen in the front yard, the others were barren and twiggy. Much to my delight, as spring rolls into summer, not one, not two, but three lilac bushes have emerged in different places in the yard. Three varieties bursting with beautiful, sweetly scented blossoms.

A gift from my Father in Heaven, Whom I imagine was waiting in eager anticipation for me to discover them. Made in His image, He is the first and best giver of gifts. I bask in the knowledge that He loves me and was thinking of me.