The Miracle of the Angel's Trumpet

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TODAY'S BIG STORY:  The Angel's Trumpet survives and thrives!  In the South, friends and neighbors pass along their  favorite plants like they do their favorite stories.  My mom's angel's trumpet has a very special story.    





Last summer, one of Mom's lifelong friends gave her a small plant to add to her perennial garden.  Because of Mom's health issues, I have been the person primarily responsible for the care of her beautiful flowers.  I know every plant in her flower beds, from the hibiscus to the four o'clocks to the shasta daisies.  Unfortunately, I did not know about the prized angel's trumpet.


The angel's trumpet was so special ~ as was the friend who gave it to her ~ that Mom decided to plant the small seedling herself.  She did not tell me that she had added a new ~ very small ~ plant to her garden.  When I began weeding the flower beds, I thought the plant looked more like young pokeweed (or poke salad).  Not knowing that she had planted the angel's trumpet, I chopped it down ~ even with the ground.




Mom was frantic!  After a fifteen minute tongue-lashing about the uniqueness of this particular angel's trumpet (which might as well have been plucked right out of heaven), she reluctantly told me not to worry about it.  Yeh...right.  So for one year, I babied that one-inch stump.  I put up a stake to mark it, which I labeled Mom's Most Precious Angel's Trumpet Stump...just to prevent lightening from striking twice.  Then, I gave it every possible opportunity to survive...sunshine, water and of course, Miracle Grow!  But for four seasons, nothing happened.  No growth.  No change. No miracle.
 

Just last week, I got my miracle.  I was so excited when I arrived at Mom and Dad's to put out pine straw and saw the beautiful angel's trumpet in all of its glory!  Mom had wanted to surprise me, and what a surprise!  For one entire year, the sight of that little stump grieved me sore.  Within a two-week period, the angel's trumpet had sounded forth a reverie of redemption, endurance and triumph! What a sheer delight! 

Such an amazing story for us all!  Today's Big Story!  Never judge an angel's trumpet by its tiny little stump, and never predict a story's end by how it begins...you might just miss the very best part!

Dianne ; )