I hate weeding my flower beds.  I attribute that to the fact that my mom always had flowers planted everywhere and part of our nightly ritual in the summer was to go out after supper and pull weeds.  As I would gripe and complain about having to help her with that chore, she would explain that it is important to get the weeds out of the flowers because if left unattended, eventually the weeds would overpower and choke out the flowers.  If you wanted to keep the flowers blooming and beautiful, you had to stay on top of those weeds.

A few weeks ago as I was (grudgingly) pulling weeds from my flower beds so that I could enjoy the beauty of the flowers a little longer this summer, I started thinking about how life is a lot like a flower bed.  We have been given a beautiful garden called Life.  There are weeds in this garden.  Sometimes they go by the name of greed, jealousy, bad attitude, hate and selfishness.  Just like in a bed of flowers, if we don’t pull those weeds every so often they will eventually take over and choke out the beauty in our life.  Sometimes the weeds in our lives don’t want to let go and we really have to work hard and dig to remove them.

As I was pulling weeds that day, I decided to make a promise to myself that every so often I will weed out my life and I will do my best to maintain and nurture my life by trying to help others in need, keeping positive thoughts and a positive attitude and surrounding myself with people who will support me and help me keep the weeds out.

My mom taught me so much more than just how to keep a flower bed beautiful…she taught me about the beauty of life.  She helped me realize that while some people complain because there are weeds among the flowers, others give thanks that there are flowers among the weeds.  

I want to tell you about my role model.  She came into my life when I was only nine years old and has been an important part of my world ever since I laid eyes on her.  I have watched her grow from a newborn infant, to an awkward little girl; from a gangly teenager into the beautiful woman she is today.  She embraces life and her belief in God with a passion that I have seen in very few people.

The day she was born, I should have been waking up to the usual smell of breakfast cooking to prepare me for another long, boring Monday in Mrs. Baron’s fourth grade class.  Instead, I woke up to my mom saying, “You need to hurry and get up.  The baby is going to be born today and you have to walk to school.”--thank goodness we lived in town!  Well, if that didn’t turn out to be the longest Monday in history!!  After school, our neighbor met me at my house and said that my niece (yay!) had been born and her name was Crystal Dawn (boo!).  I immediately started crying.   When our neighbor asked me what was wrong I replied with all the innocence of a nine year old, “I thought they would name her Ruth if it was a girl!”  (Remember, this was in the days before ultrasounds so no one knew the sex of the baby until it made its debut!)  At that point, the neighbor lady consoled me with some vanilla wafers and a glass of milk.  Then I was told I wouldn’t be able to see her until they brought her home—again, back in the days before kids were allowed to go visit in the hospitals, and new mothers and babies stayed in the hospital for an entire week.  Thus, the longest week in history!

I remember blinking back tears when I got to hold her for the first time.  From that day on, I wanted her with me always.  When she was supposed to be napping, I would sneak into her room when no one was looking and wake her up so we could play.  I didn’t grasp the necessity of babies napping until I had children of my own—now I understand why I got in so much trouble for waking her up—the adults needed her to nap!!

I remember blinking back tears as I heard she had committed her life to God as a young girl.  I remember blinking back tears when she made her first cheerleading squad, and as I watched her graduate from high school with high distinction.  I remember blinking back tears as she walked down the aisle as a beautiful bride, and again as she became a mother--all three times!

So, I am sure you are wondering why on earth would anyone who has caused me to shed so many tears be my role model.  The answer is simple…all the tears I have shed for her have been tears of joy.  Not once has she ever disappointed me or let me down.  She has always been there for me, to cheer me on or calm me down when I’ve needed it.  Her outlook on life is always positive.  Because of her testimony and witnessing, I have regained my faith and trust in God in the last few years.  She may be younger than me, but she is far wiser!  She is leaving some major footprints in life, and I want to follow in them…Crystal Dawn McDonald Trower will forever be my role model!