A Lesson in Hollyhocks

This morning on my ride to work I drove past Lions Manor on Mountain Ave and there were hollyhocks in full bloom alongside the building. You don’t see too many hollyhocks in people’s front yards anymore, although my mother-in-law still grows some amazing hollyhocks, many that I’ve never seen before. But, they used to be more popular than they are today.

When I was a little girl my mom had multi-colored hollyhocks around the house. They were a fickle flower, one strong gust of wind and they were all leaning to one side or sometimes they would fall over completely. I thought that it was a bit of a useless flower and I wasn’t particularly crazy about hollyhocks, they looked kind of spindly to me, that is until someone, I don’t remember who, showed me how to make hollyhock ladies. That changed my attitude towards them pretty quickly.
After that, I began to wait anxiously for those flowers to bloom so that I could make my precious little dolls. It was a pretty simple project. You would choose the best flower in full bloom and nip it as close to the bud as possible. I then turned the flower upside down and would take a small sharp stick and poke a hole into the base of the bud. After that I looked for a bud that was just barely opening up and nip that with about 1/4” of the stem still attached carefully maneuvering the stem into the hole and there you had a hollyhock lady. The blossom was the full skirt and the bud was the head. If you Google ‘hollyhock ladies’ you will see some pretty neat ones online. They are quite lovely.
You could make a whole bridal party with the pretty blossoms. White of course for the bride and the bridesmaids could be color coordinated or multi-colored. I was entertained for quite some time with these little projects. As long as I didn’t get too carried away because my mom still wanted some blooms to enjoy too. The petals were so soft and the colors were so rich, I guess I had never really noticed because I could never look past the stocky stems. Good thing someone took the time to show me the beauty of those Hollyhocks because I was well on my way to missing out on a gorgeous flower.
So often I do that. I miss out on things because my first impression isn’t always the best and I’m sure there are many times when I disappoint God because I just don’t see some of His finest creations because I can’t look beyond my initial reaction.
When I drove home after work I went past Lions Manor again and looked once more at those pretty little hollyhocks. That small cluster of flowers standing proudly against the building brought back such heartwarming memories. I wasn't the little girl who couldn't look past the thick stalks, but I had grown a true appreciation for the gorgeous colorful flowers. 
Could that be a small part of the reason that God created beautiful flowers and colorful birds, pretty caterpillars and silly little ladybugs? So that a young girl could develop a deep love for His creations and through this discover what a creative and imaginative God we have and then maybe just maybe she might even grow up and get to know Him personally? I know I did and I also know that I don’t thank God nearly often enough for all the wonderful things He has created just for us and that in every little detail He makes Himself known.  We just need to look past the stalks.

*After I got home I remembered a picture I had of my Grandma Doell (whom I've never met) and she is standing in a gorgeous row of hollyhocks.

“Look how the wild flowers grow! They don't work hard to make their clothes. But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth wasn't as well clothed as one of these flowers.” Luke 12:27