Stop and Smell the Roses
I long for thornless roses
with days of lingering peace
where trials are no longer present
for they have bid defeat
~
But if I stop and smell the roses
that bloom between the thorns
I find within these pauses
my strength’s fully restored
~
And in my arbor of roses
I’ve noticed a thing or two
the roses without thorns
aren’t as sweet, aren’t as true.
~
Wendy ❀ 2015
~
~
The flower cluster pictured above
is from a rose I thought was wild.
Its thorny branches appeared within a perennial border
alongside my potting shed,
despite my efforts to remove it.
~
~
The same thing happened with the one in this picture.
This is a wild rose and not quite as fragrant as the other one.
My attempts to eradicate them failed.
And I’m glad.
If it wasn’t for my busyness with writing
these two roses would never have had the chance to bloom,
and I would never have known their loveliness.
~
~
Life happens
regardless of our attempts to pull or prune out what we think is undesirable.
But I’m slowly learning that the thorny things,
the so-called weeds,
are creating something beautiful
in my heart and life.
And when I stop to smell the roses,
or focus on beauty,
my batteries get recharged.
~
~
Stay calm.
Stay the course.
Stay on your knees.
~
~
Have you ever had something beautiful (in disguise)
show up unexpectedly in your garden or life?
Do you enjoy stopping to smell the roses?
~
~
Sweet and True Blessings ~ Wendy ❀
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Here’s a 4 minute vlog about today’s topic.
~
Reblogged this on Concierge Librarian.
Thank you for the reblog. ❀
I have to smile as I have had both-the wayward watermelon in our front yard, my unexpected second chance at love. Thank you for this, friend. I am at a place of needing to see beauty in the thorns. 🙂
Thank you, Marisa. An “unexpected second chance at love” is a wonderful gift. I enjoyed reading about the wayward watermelon too. The only one I grew was so small it was a single serving. ❀
wonderful post today. thank you!
Thank you, seedbud. ❀
Well, it’s nice when it works out that way. In this case, you have a “two-fer.” Beautiful additions to your garden and good writing progress. Enjoy them both.
Thank you, Bruce. ❀ You never know what will show up in a garden. I found an unlucky rabbit’s foot once. We have a lot of birds of prey hanging around here…
I never heard of an unlucky rabbit’s foot. Only lucky ones. But that’s fully out of context with the prey’s point of view. Isn’t it?
🙂 Absolutely.
Enjoyed listening to your video, Wendy. <3 Glad that you are making good progress with your book. A very lovely poem too, with a meaningful message. Love, Iris. 🙂
Thank you, dear Iris. <3 I'm learning to enjoy the journey more and more. I sense in your poems a savoring of the everydayness of living. There are so many blessings along the way. ❀
Thank you, Wendy. Indeed, we are blessed. 🙂
Great message! We often spend too much time cultivating our expectations for life and trim back any hidden beauty attempting to surface.
So true, Gene. We need to be open to interruptions along the way—within in them treasures of wisdom may be unearthed. ❀ I’m slowly cluing into this.
Reblogged this on Yoshiko.
Thank you for the reblog, Yoshiko. ❀
Welcome, Wendy 🙂
❀Good one!Humble Thanks Wendy and Yoshiko!
Oh a rabbit’s foot, I feel sorry for the poor creature…
I’d just stop and smell the roses:)
Nice to meet you, Robin. Most of the time the rabbits that hang around our place manage to escape danger. They allow me to get up close to take pictures. ❀
Wow. Your house is a safe haven to the little creatures! Lovely:)
I love recharging here, Wendy! Thank you for a sweet devotional today!
Thank you, Debbie. You made me smile. ❀
Beautiful. I could even smell the roses. xo
Thank you, dear Shelli. <3 The first rose pictured smells just like "Roses, Roses" from Avon. ❀
Great post, Wendy. The poem is really profound and the pictures are spectacular! I enjoyed your vlog also.
I’m always honored by your visits, Bill. 🙂 Thank you, blogging brother in the Lord. ❀
Amazing post,poem and photo”s
Thank you, dear Marylou. ❀
Reblogged this on By the Mighty Mumford and commented:
SO….WHO HAS SOME ROSES I CAN SMELL????
Thank you for the reblog, Jonathan. Blessings to you and your wife. ❀
THNAKS—-AND BLESSINGS TO YOU!
I loved this, Wendy. Looking for the beauty. We have to be purposeful, don’t we? Finding the beauty in the thorny places of life requires a certain humility and a willingness to look. Thanks for sharing your beautiful photos and timely insights!
Jeanne, you’re so right “we have to be purposeful” in seeking beauty. ❀ I went for a woodland walk with one of my sons tonight, and I had to make myself forget about the black bear droppings I saw and think about the lovely scenery instead. I’m a chicken at heart. The only bears I want to get close to are Winnie the Pooh Bear and Teddy Bear. I’m glad I went—and lived to tell about it. 😉
Another lovely vlog, Wendy. 🙂 And, looking at your attire, some nice summer weather is with you. Is your property an old one? Although I live in a new-ish house, the land underneath once grew an old style garden. For a long while, remnants of the old garden would peek through every now and then. One plant to peek through was a beautiful peony. How I love that plant. Your walks with your son sound wonderful. Are driving lessons still part of your relationship?
Yes, driving lessons are continuing. I think both the guys are ready for their tests. It’s nice to be able to relax now when they’re behind the wheel instead of clinging on for dear life. 😉
Our property is one of the original ones on this road (it used to be a farm in the 1940’s).
Glad to hear you have peonies. I adore mine. They can live up to a hundred years—yay! Isn’t it wonderful when a treasure pokes its way into our garden? My white ones were a surprise too. I was able to cut it in half and plant them in a new border (they don’t like being moved—but I had to). They didn’t even sulk, and they bloomed the first year. True garden gifts. ❀
Oh you are so lucky your peonies didn’t sulk. Mine did, for several years. Great news about the boys’ driving.
Would love to smell those roses!!
🙂 Thank you, dear Gracie. ❀
Great message, Wendy. And that first rose — exquisite!
Thank you, Jennifer. It’s my favorite because it’s the most fragrant. ❀
Love the photos, love the story about the “wild” roses, love the vlog, love that you are writing novels and may be published one day. And I love smelling your “roses” and reading your wisdom. Hugs, Natalie 🙂 <3
Thank you, dear Natalie. It’s been as sunny as Texas around here the last few days. The roses are loving it too. ❀ I’m coming over to your blog to see your garden.
Lovely blog entry as always, Wendy! Your roses are gorgeous. I, myself, can help but stop to smell the roses. I’m like the proverbial honey bee, wherein any flowers are irresistible to me. I completely lose all train of thought when I see beautiful flowers. Mostly, however, I wanted to tell you that your three statements in the middle of your post were exactly what I needed to read/hear today. “Stay calm. Stay the course. Stay on your knees.” I think this has just become my new mantra for writing and for life! Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom and flowers with us!
Thank you, Elaine. I often adopt a verse or mantra to replace fearful thoughts trying to take over my mind—especially in the middle of the night. I call it replacement therapy. 😉 Faith replaces fear, and I fall back to sleep. Blessings as you believe and move forward. ❀
thank you for your beautiful thoughts and your lovely rose images.
Thank you, dear Linda. ❀
Wendy,
I share the same delight of finding little unexpected “gifts” in my little garden patch, too. Although, it is mostly herbs and veggies I plant… I will find a bird has volunteered a pretty little flower of sorts to the beautification efforts of my “weeds”. It brings a smile to my day and reminds me of that old timey hymn verse…”His eye is on the sparrow and I know He watches over me.” Wonderful blog and awesome roses, Wendy! (enjoyed the vblog,too)
Blessings ~Zoey
Thank you, dear Zoey. “His eye is on the sparrow” is one of my favorite images of God’s care for us. I wonder if it was a bird that planted my wild rose—probably. ❀
Gorgeous post Wendy and I love your wild roses! Your post has reminded me of the quote by Walter Hagen, “Don’t hurry, don’t worry and don’t dorget to smell the flowers along the way”. I love watching your videos and get a lot from them. X
Christine, thank you for the lovely quote and for your encouragement. <3 I always appreciate your visits here. ❀ "Don't hurry" appeals to me in this hurry-up-world.
Felt like this was written just for me Wendy, such a wonderful post. Flowers are stunning. I am blown away by nature every day and give thanks for the gifts sent my way, even if its a bunch of weeds. Weeds can be most beautiful too.
Thank you, dear Kath. I love the tranquil pictures on your blog today—lovely. I get more excited about a wildflower in the woods than flowers in a garden shop. ❀
Such wisdom here, Wendy. Thank you.
Thank you, dear Cynthia. The road to wisdom is bumpy. ❀
It is indeed. Well said.
Wendy, I appreciate your efforts to connect with your readers in all sorts of ways….vlogging, blogging, facebooking, writing, etc. Thank you. I really appreciated your blog/vlog today. God’s blessings as you continue to share your heartfelt thoughts and prayers with us! ~ Laura
Laura, you’ve blessed me so much over these three years of blogging—thank you. I appreciate your visits on my Facebook too. ❀ You have a gift for pairing your pictures with quotes.
Thank you Wendy! It’s fun to find “inspiration” in the photo and then “hunt” for words to express it. It’s better than shopping! 🙂
I absolutely agree with your title!!!! I love smelling roses – they are so different, some subtle, some bold… thank you for this! it’s re-charged my batteries!
Thank you, Freya, for blessing me with your words. Gardens are always a wonderful place to re-charge. ❀
So glad you didn’t have time to pull the “weeds”. You’re right, it’s so important to stop and smell the roses. Even the annoying “weeds of life”. And I’m glad to hear you received encouragement to keep writing because you do have talent. May God continue to bless your writing and inspire you to create more beautiful photos, Wendy. 🙂
Tracy, thank you for your blessing on my writing and photography. One especially nice benefit of the creative life is there’s always more to learn, and this keeps it interesting. I adore the Fancy fish you posted. ❀