To view Part I:
click on the link below:
https://www.lyndalambert.com/hope-part-1/
Post #275
December 5, 2019
Candle of Hope
Part 2
Week ONE – December 1-7, 2019
by Lynda McKinney Lambert
(First Candle in a series of five candles on the Advent wreath.)
On the first Sunday of Advent
the priest lights one of the white candles
in the ring of aromatic pine.
“This first candle stands for hope,” he says.
Part 2 – a reflection on the
Candle of Hope.
Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. Each Sunday during Advent, Christians all over the world will light a candle that will reflect one aspect of the miraculous events that lead up to the birth of Jesus.
The poem, “When My Daughter Cuts the Roses,” marks the beginning of Advent in our home.
The bouquet on my dining room table reminds me that now is the Season of Hope. As I listen to the latest news from around the world, it feels like people everywhere are longing for the hope that is signified by the lighting of the first Advent candle.
The first week of Advent is a reminder to
keep our thoughts and eyes focused on HOPE.
Read Part 1 – Click Here!
Why do we light that first candle?
I find that there is great beauty in the spiritual symbols of the weekly lighting of the Advent candles. Let’s pause to embrace the message of the Candle of Hope. Jesus is the rose, and he is the coming of Light into the entire world.
In a poem, I consider the pleasure of a visit
with our daughter, Ilsa.
Below you will read a poem about her visit at our home at Christmas in 2014 and something we did together. Sometimes, it is unusual when we think of a child teaching a parent a lesson of some sort. But, here in my poem, my daughter teaches me a lesson in a unique way.
“When my Daughter Cut the Roses”
by Lynda McKinney Lambert (2014)
My daughter looked
At the bouquet of fresh roses
noticed two of them were drooping.
“Let me show you how to trim the roses
so they stay fresh and strong.” she said.
Her hands held the roses firmly
one-by-one, trimmed off extra leaves
“These will make the water stink,” she said.
She found scissors in the drawer
put the roses in a bowl of tepid water
held each stem underwater
sliced them all, diagonally –
“As I cut the rose under the water,
little bubbles of air come to the surface.
Now, when the rose inhales
it will only breathe water into it,
it won’t fill up with air.
The living water inside the stems
gives longer life to each rose.”
She carried the freshened flowers
In the tall glass vase
back to the center of the dining room table
darkest crimson buds, sunny yellow petals,
deep green fern leaves
and a frilly white carnation.
(The End)
–
Lynda McKinney Lambert. Copyright 2014. Revised 2019. All rights reserved.
This article is provided through the courtesy of Lynda McKinney Lambert.
You can read Part 1 of this article by clicking on the link provided below.
_
Previous Publications of “When My Daughter Cut the Roses” listed below:
_Magnets & Ladders Literary Magazine, Spring/Summer Issue, 2014.
_Lambert, Lynda McKinney, Walking by Inner Vision: Stories & Poems, DLD Books, 2017.
_Lambert, Lynda McKinney, Star Signs: New and Selected Poems, DLD Books, 2019.
–
_Scheduled for publication in 2020:
Lambert, Lynda McKinney, first snow, (Chapbook) Finishing Line Press.
To view Part I:
click on the link below:
https://www.lyndalambert.com/hope-part-1/
Your comments are most welcome.
I will respond. Thank you!