Inspiration fills the air, as one breathes in the delicate perfume of the almond blossoms, while on a nature walk. Seeing winter give way to warm sunshine and new life everywhere is down right exhilerating.
“Except a seed fall into the ground and die, it abides alone!” Truer words were never spoken. Spring is the glorious celebration of new life.Thankfully, bountiful winter rains have swept over our land, which we love to call Zion; cleansing it from months of dusty grit and grime blown in from the Sahara. The weary dry, sandy brown landscape has been painted over by the Artist who owns Eternity, including the seasons. Moment by moment before our very eyes, we witness and joy to the Life springing up out of what looked like the death of fruitfulness. This January on a bitter winter day, I found two sprouted almonds that had fallen from my indigenous tree. Joyfully, I planted each in its own pot. That was just two months ago and already they are 12 inch seedlings. Enclosed find photos of this inspirational and silent awakening going on all around us. Tourists love to visit Israel at this season to join the vibrant and colorful celebration of the ‘anemones’ or kalaniot in Hebrew.
This Eternal Song, is faithfully played throughout our natural world for all people to observe, experience and eventually come to the conclusion that indeed: Life does spring out of death. Life is determined in the seed, that invisible DNA that reproduces after its own kind. But there is no life without being planted and covered over, whether it is a pumpkin, almond, oak or man or woman. Truly, we can observe and say, “O Death, where is thy sting? O grave where is thy victory?” 1 Corinthians 15:55 Job’s sorrows and troubles brought him to this understandig… “I KNOW that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God.” Job 19:25,26. I am curious… do you suspose that Job finally came to this conclusion on a fresh spring day? Why not?
The unfolding of Spring in its glorious dept, breadth and height is perhaps the greatest wordless sermon ever presented to mankind. Birds return to us via the Great Africian Rift Valley to yet again fill the air with their mating songs. Hungerily along with the bees, they take their fill of nectar from the almond blooms. The young of many indigenous animals; ibex, conies and jackals are born at this season. Israel continues to harvest grapefruit, tangerenes, lemons and cumquots, all filled with anti-oxidents to supply the lack of vitmains we may have accrued during the cold winter. Yes, let’s agree, “He satisfies every living thing… ”
Israel’s Red South Festival celebrations
