Freda's Garden

Welcome to my Garden:

On my 'Thought For Today," blog today's thought is a
Chinese proverb: "A bit of fragrance always clings to the
hand that gives you a rose." It fits well with the following
poem ,"The Gardenia."(The fragrance of forgiveness)
Jesus was beaten, spit upon and crucified, yet he could say,
"Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing."
This is truly the fragrance of forgiveness!
http://thoughtfortodayblogspot.com

THE GARDENIA
A child plucks a gardenia
As he goes about his play.
He crushes all the petals,
Then throws the flower away.

It lies upon the concrete
And is scorched by the sun;
Many heels tromp upon it,
Before the day is done.

A lonely, homeless, woman,
Gently scoops up the mangled flower;
She sniffs the battered petals
Its fragrance lingers to this hour.

The gardenia reminds her of forgiveness
As it melts her lonely heart.
It teaches her a lesson
That shall never from her depart.

No matter that it's battered
And its petals have been torn,
The fragrance speaks of forgiveness,
Truly love... in its purist form.
Freda Fullerton
February 20, 2011