Much to the chagrin of some, this will probably not be the last word about Roses on Wednesday – at least by me – and today it is not the eve of Wednesday, but of Thanksgiving Day – a day I choose to thank the Lord for those who walk in the shoes of Christ – you, John’s faithful readers, and the true contributors to our Joy and Gladness.

Roses are as old as time itself. The Sumerians made the first written record of the rose. It is the national flower of the United States of America.

The rose has been used by many a poet. It was Shakespeare who said, in Romeo and Juliet – his sad and transcendent tale of lovers whose lives are destroyed by circumstance and society – “A rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet.”

The colors of the rose have many meanings:

•  Red Roses are for Love and Respect
•  Deep Pink Roses speak of Gratitude and Appreciation.
•  Light Pink Roses signal Admiration and Sympathy
•  White Roses are for Reverence and Humility
•  Yellow Roses reflect Joy and Gladness
•  Orange Roses symbolize Enthusiasm and Desire
•  Red and Yellow Blended Roses mean Gaiety and Joviality
•  Pale Blended Tomes of all colors are for Sociability and Friendship

I have learned the best things I know about roses from a single mom who died much too young for my liking or the liking of her two teenage children. She tried with great patience to teach me how best to tend to the roses in my own garden. While my roses made a meager showing this year, out of respect to Kay, they are presently sleeping under a blanket of winter while I warm my hands in anticipation, readying myself to receive their new life.

Kay taught me about Grand roses and Hybrid Teas, Miniatures, Climbers and Bountiful roses. All are different, she explained, but all are also identical from that same rose at the beginning of time.  The story of the Rose is many-colored and filled with drama and revelation.

Just as true, we are from the beginning of time and have all the emotional colors within us.  Each rose is a story of its own with many children.  So too the story of woman and her many children who have held to the earth and to God for life and love for generation after generation, and who, like Juliet and her Romeo, have had their beauty destroyed by circumstance and society.  If it weren’t for Christ and his love, like any delicate beauty, they, and we, would die.