Lessons from My Last Zinnias

I picked the last of my zinnias today. These past days of hot, dry weather have not been kind to them, and they are done. They have lived a good life.

As I bartered with the butterflies for the final few blooms, I thought about how even though they are looking ragged, they are still providing nectar and color. I was able to squeeze out one small bouquet for the table. And out of what was left, a surfeit of seeds remained, ready for next year’s planting.

All of this after an entire summer of beauty! A complete season where they fed butterflies, bees, and moths, graced our home, swayed in the summer breezes, and generally brightened my days. Yes, they have lived a full and good life.

The blooms on my table are not the robust blossoms from early summer. They are somewhat tattered. I picked them anyway, because I believe they have a message for me.

Never stop giving. Never stop spreading beauty. Keep blooming until the very end.

And when you don’t have any more blooms to bloom, make sure that you are leaving a lot of seeds for the future. Maybe even shed a few on the way to the compost pile.

That’s a good life.

“His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matthew 25:21, KJV).

Lord Jesus, may I be found faithful.