As a boy I was puzzled by all the effort she put into them. I understood the vegetable gardens. They helped to feed the family all winter long. I even understood the flowers around the house. They were pretty and smelled so sweet in the summer months. The reason she put so much effort into caring for those potted plants, however, eluded me. They didn’t give us any food and they rarely had any flowers on them. They remained a mystery to my child’s mind.

Now as I’ve grown older I am beginning to understand why my Nana had those potted plants. It is the same reason I have so many pictures of sunrises and forests hanging in my home. They remind me during the dark, cold, winter months full of bare trees and yellow grass that light, love, and growth still exist. They remind me that Spring will come again. They remind me that God Loves us and is still with us even when the earth doesn’t show it.

Today I see Nana’s potted plants in a new light. They were worth every bit of the love and care she put into them. But my greatest reminder of light and love was Nana herself. She was light to my soul even in my darkest times. And her love lives on in my heart now that she is in Heaven. May we all learn to love as she loved, shine as she shined, and live as she lived.