Last spring when we planted some flowers in deck pots, Nathan also chose to plant a fern for our balcony. It was beautiful for a few months, but eventually, the leaves started turning brown, and then over the course of the fall and winter, it completely died…or so we thought. It confused us because we thought that ferns were native plants and should have been able to stand the winter well. All that was left was a brownish stump-looking thing poking up out of the soil.
This spring…actually right around Easter time…I noticed that there were some green shoots poking up out of the fern stump. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, our fern came back to life. It now looks beautiful again. The stump is still visible, but on top of it are some luscious green leaves, which grow every day.
The other day when my son was drawing with chalk out on our balcony, I decided to take a closer look at the fern. I had never looked closely at a fern before, and was amazed at what I saw. So much tiny detail in every frond. It was there all the time, just waiting for me to notice, yet I had never taken the time to look.
I was glad for the small miracle of this resurrection fern. It helped me to remember that there is a lot to enjoy in this life…if only I stop to notice it. It made me wonder how many other beautiful details I miss in my days, and it made me resolve again to try not to miss them!