Walking The Lenten Garden
The Lenten Rose
First Sunday Lent
These reflections grow out of simple moments in the garden during the season of Lent. In the quiet rhythms of creation, we are reminded to slow down, to notice what is before us, and to listen for the gentle presence of God.
I almost missed it.
The garden still looks mostly asleep this time of year—
bare branches, cold soil,
everything holding back.
And then, low to the ground, there it was.
Not loud.
Not showy.
Just there.
The Lenten Rose doesn’t rise above everything else.
It grows close to the earth and blooms when the season is still hard,
when the air hasn’t quite softened yet.
You don’t notice it unless you slow down.
You have to lean in a little.
Standing there, it felt like the right place to begin.
Lent has a way of drawing us lower too—
closer to what’s real,
closer to the ground.
It’s not a season that asks us to impress or get everything right.
It feels more like being invited to stay put for a while
and notice what’s already happening beneath the surface.
The Lenten Rose doesn’t rush that.
It blooms where it is.
Quietly.
Faithful to the season it’s been given.
There was something comforting about that as I stood there.
I don’t always need to rise above everything or figure things out quickly.
Maybe faith, at least sometimes,
looks like staying close,
staying rooted,
and trusting that being seen doesn’t require being loud.
This week, I’m paying attention to the small, steady things—
the parts of life that don’t look impressive but are still alive.
The quiet faith that keeps showing up even when nothing feels finished yet.
Maybe that’s where God is closest.
Continue Walking the Lenten Garden
Ash Wednesday
Budding Twig – Second Sunday Lent