The flowers are waiting to hear from you!September 26, 2024

We were converting a piece of land at 35thand Cedar in Cleveland into a garden. It was suggested that juvenile felons or service kids might be helped by planting flowers and vegetables as their service there instead of letting the ground be wasted. I was to be responsible for the teenagers.

His name was Mike and he was not nice. He also had to do hours of community service. I could tell that Mike was going to be a problem. He was angry, belligerent, nasty, uncooperative, and did not want to plant “dumb flowers” anywhere.

It was 9:00 in the morning and I could tell he was not capable of working with the group so we gave him the task of creating his own small garden down the street. He was told to dig up the ground and prepare the soil. I gave him the flowers to be planted. I suggested he talk to the flowers, “tuck them in,” and arrange them nicely. He grumbled, protested and complained but had no choice but to work. At 10:00 I stopped to see and compliment his work. He still griped and told me how stupid this garden was.

Every half hour I checked on Mike and reminded him to talk and listen to the flowers, to “tuck them in” gently and ask them to grow. I suggested talking with the earth about his complaints.

By 10:30 he became quiet and more relaxed, eager to finish his garden. Over the course of the morning his nasty behavior changed. I said not a word about God to him.

When it was time to take him back to the police station he asked to have his name put on the small garden. I took a popsicle stick, put his name on it, and stuck it in the ground.

After everyone put the garden tools away and left. I stopped to water Mike’s garden

A car pulled up. He brought his mother to see his garden. “See,” he quietly said to her,

“I can’t be all bad if I can do something like this garden.”

Perhaps nature is really sacramental. All we have to do is connect to activate the flow

of the Spirit of Jesus. His aliveness and healing is in the living earth. Have you talked to the flowers recently? You better hurry because Fall is coming and flowers are waiting to hear from you.

Psalm 98

Shout to the Lord, all the earth;
break out in praise and sing for joy! Sing your praise to the Lord with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song, with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn.
Make a joyful symphony before the Lord, the King!

Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Let the earth and all living things join in. Let the rivers clap their hands in glee!
Let the hills sing out their songs of joy before the Lord,
for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice,
and the nations with fairness.

Sister Mary Joan Grisez