Shelter in Place: A Story of Spring Bows

“Is the spring coming?" he said. "What is it like?"...
"It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine...” 

― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

I’ve got ever so much on my heart these days. Aches and joys alike. It all feels very much like the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine. I have prayers and poems echoing throughout my soul.

But amidst all the uncertainty, there are truths unchanging, and tiny reminders of joy abiding; such as little bows that set in motion much bigger and deeper feelings, and cast my eyes and heart further still on what is good and what is true.

A palate painted in a dream, planted in nature, brewed in a pot, imbued into woven fibers, and stitched together by caring hands. Hands that belong to a woman who bares many titles, among them, wife, mother, maker, and community member. Beyond her credentials, she carries with her a heart of deep and honest compassion. I’ve heard it in her voice and seen proof by her actions. And through every whisper of hope she weaves into each little bow, a treasure is formed.

I had long been dreaming alongside Katie (of KdBird) of a whimsical and romantic photoshoot to illuminate the beauty of spring and her sweet little bows—when only a week before our arranged plans the world was turned upside down. Our vision was immediately changed by the Shelter in Place orders, but with grace and calm, Katie modeled a kind of integrity that revealed to me all the more the heart behind her business.

We opted instead to look at the blessings of home, the extraordinary, ordinary magic within. And in the days to follow, the sun shone on the rain, and the rain fell on the sunshine, and the children did as children do; they carried with them everywhere they went, a sense of wonderment, a deal of whimsy, and a spark of magic—as natural and beautiful as the spring pigments worked into the bows.

Concluding Thoughts (unrelated to bows)…

Earlier this week Katie was talking to me about the lessons of observation. We were talking about the garden, but I’ve held her words close all week as I’ve stood back with watchful eyes. Watching my children, joy filled as ever. Watching my community, putting forth an effort unmatched to stand with and for one another. Watching our Country, displaying a communal effort that has not seen since WWII. Watching the world, feeling the same ache and waiting with the same hope . Through the darkness, light has been cast upon the goodness of this world, an unfolding of the most idyllic and heartfelt support, instantaneously, as if we each had an intuition that this is how it was meant to be all along. People for people. Supporting one another in loving kindness. May we always remember the tenderness of heart in this season, and carry it through with us to the other side and forevermore.

Candice HackettComment