(Author of The Twelve Gifts From the Garden) Charlene Costanzo lifts our spirits with this specific Touchstone.
“The most significant gifts are the ones most easily overlooked. Small, everyday blessings: woods, health, music, laughter, memories, books, family, friends, second chances, warm fireplaces, and all the footprints scattered throughout our days.” – Sue Monk Kidd
The bloom of the wax plant, even though it’s spectacular, can easily be overlooked. The clusters hang beneath branches so heavy with leaves that the downward flowers are almost hidden.
I’m grateful to have noticed them when I walked the pathways upon arrival here in the botanical garden I write about in The Twelve Gifts from the Garden.
I learned that the wax plant flower represents wealth and I think about the richness of gifts and blessings we have in our lives, whether or not we are affluent.
This flower reminded me to appreciate the day’s simple joys, such as laughing with my husband when we got drenched in a sudden rainfall, warming in a hot shower, drying with a fresh towel, the smell of dinner roasting, going out for ice cream…being here on Sanibel Island, simply being.
Let’s notice simple things that uplift us today, including simply being.
With love and joy,
Charlene
THE SIXTH GIFT IS JOY: May it keep your heart open and filled with light. – from The Twelve Gifts of Birth
The Twelve Gifts from the Garden
Life Lessons for Peace and Well-Being
Translating the beauty of botany. If you look closely, plants sprout with willpower and bloom with determination. Drawing from the beautiful nature of trees and flowers, Charlene crafts garden-inspired messages from her experiences with healing and understanding. Inside, find quotes, reflections, and bonus material:
- Pen-and-ink line drawings with illustrations of flowers, leaves, and garden plants
- Charlene’s Twelve Gifts resource and lessons learned in the garden
- An epilogue from two other locales─Sedona, AZ and St. John, VI