God’s Creativity Displayed in the Garden

Aug 7

I’m going to take a break from Europe today and come closer to home.

A couple weeks ago, Ron and I traveled to the Portland, Oregon, region for my beautiful niece’s wedding. What a joyful celebration watching the couple pledge their love and devotion to one another! We were also able to spend time with two cousins, both remarkable women with whom we enjoyed recalling and creating family memories.

Before returning home, on our final day, we made a first-time visit to the famed Portland Rose Garden. It did not disappoint! Gardens of all types fascinate me, and I liked this little poem on a plaque at the Rose Garden. Dorothy Gurney wrote:

IN A GARDEN

The kiss of the sun for pardon,

The song of the bird for mirth,

One is nearer God’s heart in a garden

Than anywhere else on earth.

Before sharing some of Ron’s photos from the Portland Rose Garden, I’d like first to show you a photo from the small garden area at our own home.

I couldn’t help but think of my mom who loved hummingbirds. I know she would have delighted in this photo Ron captured of a hummingbird in our back yard, eager to draw nectar from a Bee Balm blossom. I imagine Mom enjoying these dainty, beautiful birds, which may be plentiful in Heaven!

*Over 10,000 rose bushes call the 4.5 acres Portland Rose Garden home. Beautiful stone pathways welcome over 700,000 visitors each year. Choosing to visit early in the morning was a wise decision!*

*I called this bench—one of many in the park—“Weathered Simplicity.”*

I hope you’ll enjoy the following photos from the Portland Rose Garden, which is a mere sampling of its 650 different varieties of roses. The rose is known as the Queen of Flowers.