The Christmas cactus has been blooming for a couple of weeks. I took this picture before I really saw that many of the flowers had gone by. Hoping for a more pleasing picture, I removed them.

That’s when I noticed all the buds. They are so much smaller than the faded blooms, and they don’t catch the eye like the flowers in their prime. But there they are, the sure signs of beauty to come. How extraordinary a gift to see the promise of what is yet to be, the presence of what is, and the vestiges of what once was, sitting on my bookcase.

There’s something here, gently nudging me to a truth usually overlooked. Appreciate the gift of what was and the beautiful vitality of what is. And, when the signs of what is yet to be appear, take notice and be grateful. Cactus wisdom at its best. If I apply it to my life as a whole, I just might get a glimpse of God’s presence in just about everyone and everything. I just might stop to honor the holy that Once was, rejoice in the Now, and love the Yet To Be.

Lord, grant me eyes to see.