Thankful Thursday * Friends and Flowers

I was reminded of this painting lately, so dug out the old photo to show you.
It is something i painted years ago in my "Flowers' phase, and someone bought it and it has probably had several homes by now.

What reminded me of it was that several people who have been walking by our house lately have commented to us how lovely our yard is. Well I'm not going to show you a picture of my yard. I would be too embarrassed. It is awful! It is full of moss and weeds, moles, and, well, a real mess.
But, we have daffodils blooming abundantly, and when people go by that is what they see.

The painting above says, "Your friends see your garden, not your broken fence."
Isn't that great? Those people who were walking by did not see all the weeds and mess, they just saw the beauty of the flowers. We see all the mess, others see the beauty.

That's the way our friends are. They see our beauty. They believe in us. They dream with us, encourage us, pick us up when we fall, dust us off, and help us move forward, and bloom again.
When we lose the song in our heart, they sing it back to us and help us remember the song is still there.

So, today:

1. I'm thankful for people just walking by, who reminded me that there is beauty in everything if we look past the 'mess' and see the heart.

2. I'm thankful for my wonderful friends, who have helped me to enjoy life so much, are there to encourage me, rejoice with me, celebrate life with me, and, love me unconditionally.

3. I am most thankful for a loving God, who knows my heart, who knows the plans He has for me, who will use my hurts to help me grow, and to help others when they are hurt.
He sees past my shortcomings to all my potential.

And isn't He so gracious, to use an old piece of art work, and weeds in our yard, to show us His love.

Blessings,

Barbara Jean