“Her smile put the sunflower to shame.” - Jerry Spinelli, Stargirl
Did you ever have the experience of coming upon something in nature so magnificent or unexpected that it almost took your breath away, or at least made you stop and say, “Wow!”? Such was the case last week for me as I traveled a back road in Chester County, PA. My niece had alerted me to the not-to-be-missed field of sunflowers, so I was looking for them. Nevertheless, as my car rounded a slight bend in the road, I was “wowed” by the sight before me. Acres and acres of sunflowers as far as the eye could see stood tall and proud, evidence of the treasures that can be found in our natural world.
I pulled safely off the road and joined a handful of other onlookers. There were mothers capturing pictures of their children as they played peek-a-boo in the carefully planned rows of blooms. A professional photographer gave a young girl (possibly a model) directions as she struck different poses with the flowers as her backdrop. And then there were others, like me, snapping a few pictures, leaning in for close-ups, and just taking in the beauty.
There was an air of reverence and peacefulness as we wandered – quiet whispers and careful steps. Even the children remembered to look with their eyes, not with their hands. A small bench stood on the perimeter, as if the owners anticipated that others would be drawn to wonder, reflect, and find peace and encouragement among the sunflowers.
Seeing this sight was a gentle reminder that in the hectic day to day rituals of our lives, it is important sometimes to stop and smell the roses (or in this case, the sunflowers).
Did you ever have the experience of coming upon something in nature so magnificent or unexpected that it almost took your breath away, or at least made you stop and say, “Wow!”? Such was the case last week for me as I traveled a back road in Chester County, PA. My niece had alerted me to the not-to-be-missed field of sunflowers, so I was looking for them. Nevertheless, as my car rounded a slight bend in the road, I was “wowed” by the sight before me. Acres and acres of sunflowers as far as the eye could see stood tall and proud, evidence of the treasures that can be found in our natural world.
I pulled safely off the road and joined a handful of other onlookers. There were mothers capturing pictures of their children as they played peek-a-boo in the carefully planned rows of blooms. A professional photographer gave a young girl (possibly a model) directions as she struck different poses with the flowers as her backdrop. And then there were others, like me, snapping a few pictures, leaning in for close-ups, and just taking in the beauty.
There was an air of reverence and peacefulness as we wandered – quiet whispers and careful steps. Even the children remembered to look with their eyes, not with their hands. A small bench stood on the perimeter, as if the owners anticipated that others would be drawn to wonder, reflect, and find peace and encouragement among the sunflowers.
Seeing this sight was a gentle reminder that in the hectic day to day rituals of our lives, it is important sometimes to stop and smell the roses (or in this case, the sunflowers).
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