MEN ARE LIKE LANTANAS AND BLUE SAGE

Last evening, as I was weed whacking, a woman stopped to tell me how beautiful she thought my property was.   I was stunned!   This soilless rock and steep terrain with little topsoil does not support much.  Then there are the midnight marauders- herds of Axis deer, like hedge clippers gone wild, devouring my months of work in a nighttime feast.  Two years ago, I resigned myself to a “wild” landscape that is anchored primarily in giant Lantanas and untidy, but large swaths of two foot tall Blue Sage resembling giant bluebonnets.  Neither can be tamed into manicured hedges or tidy bushes.

With a joyful heart, I pondered her gratitude and my ingratitude. There I was grumbling because I so miss the lush tropicals and roses that grew so easily in Oregon and California.  Was I not like the Israelites wandering in the wilderness, not appreciating the manna from heaven, because “We remember the fish we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. But now our appetite is gone; there is nothing to see but this manna!” (Numbers 11:4-6).  I had not had to plant what God has bountifully supplied-these native plants which thrive and show His glory in such adverse conditions that my favorites could never survive.

  Like MEN!!  When married, we often grouse about them not being neat enough, or a little coarse and maybe not the fine-featured stars of stage and screen. But when we take a look at the “big picture” of their lives and how they care for us in quiet strength- steadfast and unmoved by storm through the fire of youth and later the wisdom of ages,we appreciate our Lantanas and Blue Sage guys.   

Up at the crack of dawn to head to jobs in the scorching sun or icy winter weather, they demand little in the way of care from us. They thrive and help us to survive life’s extremes and tragedies.  At home, they take care of the dirty jobs- the snow blowing, the DIY plumbing and gutter cleaning or up on the roof hanging Christmas lights.  Men are like the Lantanas and Blue Sage, which die back in winter but will surely spring forth and flower through the dry summer heat!