This bloomed today. Mother’s Day 2026. The delicate beauty stopped me in my tracks as I walked out the door. I had to step off the sidewalk into the mulched area and take a minute to breathe in the fragrance…and it was beautiful!

It’s been a long time coming, this sweet blooming peony. It starts out as quite a root– not becoming to the eye at all. Sits underground for a good long while. Then it pops up and there is greenery- pretty, but nothing major. It grew quietly amongst other flowers that were blooming beautifully throughout the spring, summer, and even fall. No blooms, only green leaves, then with the first frost, it disappeared. It was kind of unremarkable to say the least.

But… being remarkable takes time. And this Spring, the little peony quietly and consistently grew bigger. About a week ago, the first bud appeared- a little pinkish white ball stretch-stretch-stretching out amidst the green. I took note, and hoped to see that little bud flower.

On this Mother’s Day, – this little unremarkable little peony had the most remarkable and fragrant bloom! It was a sweet, sweet reminder of the beauty and bliss, the splendor and the stretch, the patience and the absolute gift of being a mom.

I’m reminded that we have 9 months while our little ones are unseen…but although unseen, they are present and oh how they are being fearfully and wonderfully made. And then the birth- like a little plant breaching the surface, they are born- and we have the gift of seeing them face to face…getting to know these little gifts and nurturing them.

Peonies need fertile soil, sun, and water. Our babies need a bit more than that, but like peonies, they can be forgiving of seasons when things are anything but perfect. Real world mothering isn’t a perfect science or fool-proof step by step process, it’s a daily gift of doing our best to love well, nurture well, and release to the next step. Yes, to doing our absolute best. And yes to receiving grace when we fall short.

Also, in growing peonies, some things, a LOT of things, happen without our assistance. God’s design is good for the peonies, and it’s good for us. Oh so many things are up to us as moms, but thankfully, a lot of beautiful steps in the process of growing up happen the way they happen without our intervention. And thankfully, divine intervention is a prayer away–(but sometimes, like the peony root, the remedy may be unseen to the human eye for a time.) Patience is key. So is hope. So is perseverance to keep doing the things when the results aren’t seen.

And then, one day when we might least expect it, we’ll see the growth, the bloom, the beauty and we will marvel and wonder at the precious gift. I have marveled more times than I can count at seeing the beauty in the amazing gifts of my children who are so not children anymore. I have looked with wonder at the way each has ‘bloomed’ in their own way in their own seasons. And some are in bloom while others might be in a short, more dormant period–but oh how all of the seasons are integral parts of the process of growing and blooming.

So on this Mother’s Day, I just wanted to share my two cents about the absolute gift of being a mom. There’s beauty in every stage…and sometimes, the ones growing the most in some seasons, might just be us.

By His Grace ~

Heather

“Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord… They will be like a tree planted by the water.”

Jeremiah 17:7–8