At a recent wonderful event called a “plant swap” I was blessed to be given a charming little bulb-type plant called a Rain Lily. The Latin name, Zephyranthes, actually means “wind flower,” but the reference to precipitation comes from its habit of appearing suddenly after a rain.

In my case, some serious watering has caused it to bloom, but other gardeners insist that it seems to know the difference between a hose and the real thing. It is quite possible that it needs to be entirely saturated for several hours after a dry spell, and manual watering may not replicate nature enough to produce the pretty pink flower.

After the bloom, which lasts only a day or two, it goes back to its unobtrusive little life, looking like the most commonplace of grasses with its thin, short leaves.

I don’t think about this plant very much, and it’s certainly not a central player in the garden. In fact, I think so little of it that I have not even found a permanent home for my little Zephyranthes. It sits on my back walkway in the little pot that it came in.

The poor thing deserves better than that, but it looks so ordinary when it’s not sporting its delicate pink flower. That humble appearance lowers the priority for me to plant it. That is, until it blooms!

The bloom is so unexpected when it happens, also. Two out of the three times it has graced my walkway with its sudden splendor, it was not noticed until it was in full, open bloom.

Isn’t life a little like that? It seems we are stuck in a repetitive, mundane pattern of waking up, rushing off to work, coming home and having just enough time to eat a rushed supper and fall asleep; just to repeat the pattern tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, and the next—well, you get the picture.

“For what does a man get in all his labor
and in his striving with which he labors
under the sun? Because all his days his task
is painful and grievous; even at night his
mind does not rest. This too is vanity”
(Ecclesiastes 2:22, 23).

Then, out of the blue, God sends a change of weather into our lives, and the colors and exquisite beauty of our life in him unfold. We then remember that our lives have been blessed all along, just like the Rain Lily’s bulb was there all along.

God is so good to us every minute of every day. He is there, just waiting to bless us. Isn’t it grand when He sends us his magnificent blessings at an unexpected time?

As we survey our lives and see repetitive, wearisome monotony, we must keep in mind that there are blessings and joys just beneath the drab surface. While we may not be wishing for rain, of course we need it and it will produce beauty and goodness in our lives, if we only look around to see it.

I think I will plant my Rain Lily this week. It should be appreciated all the time!

–Christine Berglund