My grandson loves to go outside and explore, even as a three-year old. His little inquisitive mind is an inspiration to the wonderment of life. I too remember as a child loving the outdoors and especially stumbling upon a dandelion patch. I would yank the stalk out of the ground and blow softly on the puff-ball seed head. I could stand for hours watching them float off in all different directions.
The dandelion is classified as a weed, even though it's of the daisy family. It also has been used over the ages for various medicinal and health benefits. Dismissed as a weed, sprayed with pesticides at all costs, rejected for its stubbornly long taproots that often refuse to give up from the earth, it's earned a reputation for uselessness and invasiveness. However, to a child it's a fun puff ball.
You might curse it as a weed when it pops up in your lawn. However, this tenacious little plant can grow practically anywhere there is a crack in the sidewalk or a bit of soil.
Are there things, situations, or people in our lives that we have classified invasive or weeds,
something that we can't get rid of? Maybe today we should see our challenges through the eyes of a child, looking not at the facts that this is a weed, but something that needs our focus or attention. Looking for the silver-lining in the clouds has value. It releases us to the beauty of the moment and the value of each person with their own unique gifting.
Through the eyes of a child we can enter into the kingdom of God, Matt:18:3-4. We can see the dandelions as they truly are dancing in the wind. As we humble ourselves like a little child we acknowledge our reliance is not within ourselves, but God. Just as a little child will hold the hand of their parent, relying on their parents for direction, so we are to look to our heavenly Father, take his hand and allow him to guide us.
My kudos to you today is to start afresh. Look at your challenges not as invasive or useless, but something of value that has been allowed in our lives for a reason. The dandelion can thrive in difficult conditions. It is no wonder that people say the flower symbolizes the ability to rise above life's challenges. Rise above today, blow gently on your dandelion and see the seeds of frustration float freely away dancing into the wind.
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