Rose Smeller

Through the years my Dad has passed down more than a few qualities to me. For as long as I can remember my Dad has had a great appreciation for the beauty of nature. He is an artist by profession, but it is his personal art which best portrays and captures this appreciation; He paints, he sketches he photographs. His art captures the majesty of creation at its best; the sky with its’ varying colors on display, the clouds floating effortlessly by, the sea with its’ changing emotions of gentleness and power, the desert landscapes both serene and harsh at the same time. With the eye of an artist he sees the big picture and notices the tiniest detail. He is the one who taught me to stop and smell the roses.

When I was a young girl the neighbors across the street from my grandparents had a yard full of rose bushes. They were beautiful, every color imaginable filled their front yard. One afternoon my Dad took me across the street to their yard and photographed me standing amongst the blooms. He took some of me admiring the roses, some of me smelling the roses.  So you see, he really did hand down an appreciation of roses and all flowers for that matter.

Another thing my Dad passed down to me is my fast-paced walking stride. He is a very fast walker and as a little girl, with my little legs, I would do my best to keep up with him. As a result of this training I’m still a fast walker, but I also take time to stop and smell the roses.  I walk around the block almost every day, and as I approach the yards with roses in front, I purposefully bring my feet to a halt, lean over, and deeply breathe in the fragrance of the bloom, letting the sweetness bring me to my senses, helping me appreciate my surroundings. Let’s face it, life is not always full of roses, so when we do encounter them along the way we need to be sure to enjoy them.

Song of Solomon 2:11-12, Look, the winter is past,
    and the rains are over and gone.
¹² The flowers are springing up,
    the season of singing birds has come…

In the fast pace of everyday life we must be mindful to purposefully pause and take in our surroundings, take time to stop and smell the roses. I am a rose smeller, yep that’s me!