Flower from Heaven

2 years ago right before Mother’s Day (a day that strikes fear into the hearts of every infertile person, including me), I received a flower from heaven. I was just dreading the approach of this day. It had been a rough few years filled with negative infertility test result after another. I needed no reminder that I was unable to have a child and that my dream of hearing a little one call me "mom" seemed so far away.

Well, during that week before Mother's Day I drove home from work and I went to walk in the front door I spotted a rose sticking straight up out of the ground.

My hubby and I are not the greatest gardeners (not by a long shot) and for a split second I thought, "how in the world did a rose grow there? But then I took a closer look and saw that it was a single rose that someone had placed there.

I thought, "Who did this? How did this get here?" I had no idea. Then the thought came to me, “my future child had dropped it down from heaven and it had landed there for me to see.” I felt so loved and happy. It was a beautiful feeling. I went inside and asked my hubby,"did you put a rose in the yard for me?" At first he said “Yes”, but then he admitted, “No, but that would’ve been a good idea”. I told him how I thought it was from our child up in heaven and he agreed that must be who left it there.

Then a day or two later I was at the neighbor's house picking something up or dropping something off and my neighbor asked me if I had gotten the flower she left me for Mother’s Day. At first I didn’t know what she was talking about, but then I realized the flower from my yard was from her. I was a little sad to find out who had left it there, because now I knew it wasn't from my little child waiting to come down to our family, but I was also grateful that she had thought about me during this difficult time and in such a simple way had shown that she cared. And even though I know it was from her, I still like to think she was just delivering it to me from my child.

For months and now years I have meant to thank her for that kind act, but never had. Then it seemed like way too much time had passed, and she wouldn't even remember what putting the flower there if I thanked her. But this experience has stuck with me, and I felt that I needed to let her know how much I appreciated that simple act of kindness. So today I finally left a little note and gift on her doorstep thanking her for thinking of me during that time.

I am so grateful to have kind people in my life. Sometimes we don't know what the smallest act of compassion will do to help brighten and lift another's person's day.

What is something someone has done for you? And have you taken the time to thank them for it?