Growing in the Dark- by, Tom Tamburello

Many years ago I had the chance to visit poet William Wordsworth’s house in the U.K. One of his well-known poems is entitled “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”. The poem tells the tale of daffodils, and his home was surrounded by them in early spring when I had the chance to visit. As spring has sprung and we are stuck inside, well, at least near our homes, I am seeing the sprouting daffodils and other flowers from the ground, as if they are unware of the somewhat chaotic, fearful times some of us are experiencing now.
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I thought about these daffodils. They spend most of the time, 10 months or so, in the darkness of the ground, perhaps unaware of what is to come, or just waiting in silence for a new awakening. It must be lonely under that ground, certainly dark, damp; and yet now they make an appearance, showing their full beauty to the world.

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​It reminds me of some of the darkness that we are surrounded by right now. There are fears of illness, realities of the end of life, the danger of short supply, and yet, there are many good things happening. People are starting to be more intentional about connecting with others. People are taking time to pray. People are finding time to just breathe and reflect on life. Many people are returning to simple pleasures, whether it be cooking, playing board games, completing a crossword puzzle, reading that dusty book on the shelf, or working on a puzzle. For many, it has been a time to slow down, a great time to be still and know. That is a phrase that has come up a lot in my weekly FBC small group meetings.
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Daffodils, basking in the sunlight while appreciating the rain, living in darkness, and growing in that darkness, to be something beautiful. My First Baptist Family, when you see the daffodils or other spring flowers I pray that you can see some of the beauty that comes out of the darkness.

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