SO, how's your rose holding out? I hope it is still in your care and doing well. For me, it is always fun to "take care" of a rose once I get it home to a cup or vase of water. I usually will cut the end of the rose just a little bit so that it to has a fresh chance to absorb all the water it needs. Then I just enjoy it.
Sometimes, the rose wilts pretty quick. Other times, it stays "happy" and vibrant for days. Sometimes, the rose stays nice, but never really opens and other times it opens up so much that it takes my breath away.
Roses are just about as dramatic as we can be. They can be really showy or really passive or uneventful. ha! They can be covered in wicked thorns or thornless--smooth. They can be scented or not; either way, roses always smell amazing to me. (Side note: if your rose stinks today after receiving it yesterday, it's because your water is old and you need to pour it out and get fresh water...and go ahead and cut the end of the stem again to help it absorb the water.)
So many things about taking care of your rose can be related to the way we take care of our lives. And the many different ways roses will exist in a vase is very similar to the many different ways we exist on this earth. How is your rose "existing" tonight?
Of course, we all would love our rose (especially the free kind) to be beautiful and in full bloom forever and ever. But, we all know that is not how it works. Personally, even with all the facts about the rose being a short lived thing and possibly not fully blooming and such, I would much rather have a real rose in a vase than a fake one that stays in the same state it was when I received it. I enjoy watching the change; the progression, from bud--to full bloom. There is so much to be learned in that.
If you think that I am going a bit too far on this rose thing, that's just fine with me. We (Sarah and I...and a bunch of people who donated money to THE ROSE to buy them for you) made sure that you got a free rose this week SO THAT you would actually have the opportunity to think about such things. Life is short. Our existence on this planet is but a breath in the grand timeline of history. I hope that the rose you receive helps you to think, even if for a quick second about the God who made you. Yes, you are created by the Living God. God didn't just make you and then turn you loose to grow up on this planet without His help. He made a way for you to be forever connected to Him; a way that you would know His word and a way to heaven to spend eternity with Him. He sent His Son--Jesus.
THE ROSE is meant to give you an avenue to think about God, to think about truth. I encourage you to keep checking in to this blog and read more about what THE ROSE is meaning in the lives of so many women. THE ROSE could be the story you tell for decades to come--how your point of view, your journey through this life was changed on the day you received your red rose; and possibly altered forever in a good way--toward hope.
Feel free to comment on this blog, "follow" the blog, share it with your friends. And in the meantime, I hope to see you on campus. Sarah hopes to see you on campus, too. I probably won't remember all of you, but you'll probably remember me or my friend Sarah. Say hi, if you see us, tell us you are a member of THE ROSE. Free hugs will be there for the taking, friend.
Until next blog post...
Sincerely loving and praying for you all,
Becky (and Sarah)
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