Friday, April 22, 2011

Our Good Friday flower robbery.

I delight in seeing things grow.  I enjoy, flowers, fruit trees, gardens, yard work, etc.  So I am enjoying having a tiny plot in front of our front door to watch a few flowers grow.  Our calla lily is our special plant.  Heather's wedding bouquet had calla lilies.  And we enjoy caring for, watching, and waiting with anticipation for any new buds.  A few days ago it looked so beautiful glistening with raindrops that I took photos to share with you here.  Pardon the quality of the photos, but notice the third bud ready to open.

Today is Good Friday.  And this morning we looked out our front door and saw this.

A Catholic procession.  And then I saw this.

Someone had stolen all three of our calla lilies.  A little while later Sarah saw them in a vase in on the security guards' desk in the entrance to our apartments.  Yep, they were the same ones...the little bud and the two big blooms.  I told Heather that I was going to ask about it.  Heather said that she wanted to, so I let her.  Heather asked them where they got the flowers.  They said, "One of the residents brought them."  Heather said that someone took them from from our garden without asking us.  The guards said, "But these flowers are for the Virgin."  With their expressions saying that we should feel honored and happy -- end of story.  Heather let them know that they should still ask before taking our flowers and that this wasn't the first time that someone took our flowers.  Afterward she gave them some of her homemade candied almonds so they would know that we held no ill will.

I told our family that whoever took the flowers didn't have the blameless heart that King David had.  For he said that he couldn't offer a sacrifice to God that didn't cost him anything.  (2 Sam. 24:24)  It doesn't speak well of a god when it's followers can only choke up a stolen offering, or something lame, or just extras.  Also many other infamous crooks throughout history stole from people with the excuse of a higher cause such as giving to others.  [Think Robin Hood the hooded robber and Pablo Escobar the cocaine drug lord who would kill and steal yet give to the poor.  And Communism, etc.]  Jesus called the Pharisees hypocrites and said they made void the law of God for their traditions.  Because they said that you could ignore your parents needs if you were going to give it as an offering to their religious coffers.  (Mk 7:11)  Today was a perfect teaching moment.

All in all it looks like we'll have to start enjoying our garden flowers in a vase on our table from now on.  Unless we want others to steal them to give them to the virgin and other needy causes.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Reminds me about the story of the Pineapple Garden that I used to hear when I was small.

Anonymous said...

Oops, I think it's call The Pineapple Story. You can google it.

The Dickinsons said...

Thank you so much for the comments. I thought of The Pineapple Story too. And God is trying to develop us too. For I can't remember how many times we have been robbed in one form or another (mainly in this culture): money, cell phones, little things out of our house, etc. God has let me know that the most important things is my attitude toward those who have taken from me. Often this has been hard, when you discover that the person taking advantage of you is your trusted friend. How would Jesus react in this situation? Ignore it, confront it, keep staying close and friends but without trust... is that possible? I know Jesus loved Judas unto the end. Anyway this time it was only flowers and we do not know which of our neighbors is taking them and I thought it would be a good window for you to see in this culture. Again thanks for commenting. Phillip

The Dickinsons said...

Kira:
You addressed some legitimate issues.
Every situation is so different and only God knows the right solution. We are blessed to be able to ask Him for wisdom to lead us and to give us grace to represent Him to others who don't know Him yet. I also would try to pull myself out of a situation that is pulling me in a way that I don't want to go. May God bless you, lead, you and give you grace.
Phillip

Anonymous said...

Dearest Son, How my heart ached to see the lovely lilies gone. Was the virgin supposed to be in the guard house????? On the positive, my heart rejoiced that you could turn it into a teaching tool. Your comments on this blog are rich and show they come from a man after God's own Heart. I love you and am glad that you have a heart for service even when some can be so unkind. Jesus did . . . oh to be like Him. Love, Moma

Daryl Hausman said...

Dearest Phillip, Heather and kids, How sad this made my heart and yet lets us know HOW MUCH THE WORLD NEEDS JESUS! Our prayers are with you as you reach out and try to touch lives for Jesus, the One true God! Much Love, The Hausman's

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear/see your loss. Big for "someone" and though small for you it still hurts.
Pray for the child (hopefully) or adult who did this.
Love & Prayers,
Dad/Gramp

sherryldickinson said...

Dear Phillip and Heather,
I typed for a loooooong time on a comment for this post but once again I lost it in Cyber Space!! Hopefully, I'll remember to copy and save it - next time!
Your Calla Lillies were absolutely gorgeous! I'm thankful you were able to post a picture of them on your blog. That way I got to see how PRETTY THEY WERE. Smile.
I miss you guys terribly and I love you even more than I miss you!
Mom D

The Dickinsons said...

Thank you all for your kind notes. We're okay; don't worry about us. It was just frustrating. But the flowers will grow back and we weren't invaded nor did we face threat nor loose anything of great value. I wasn't whining, but I did find it a striking and interesting turn of events and since I was going to share the pictures of our flowers with you anyway, I decided to share it with you. Thanks so much for caring for us.
Phillip and family

Bryanna Shirk said...

I am SOOOO sorry about your flowers :( I am glad you got a picture before they where stolen though.

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