Beauty and Mystery Encourage One to Take a Closer Look

The beauty of the iris hides its mysteries within

Few flowers wear purple as well as the iris. And few flowers are as intriguing. Irises normally bloom in April here, but this one surprised me by blooming again in December. What joy it brought to have some bright color in the midst of the green and brown in my garden.

Notice how the petals bend to conceal what’s within the heart of the flower. Most flowers open up to the sun for all to see within. But the modest iris hides its innermost heart. Instead, shows its beard so you will want to lift those petals and see what’s underneath. The pollinators use the beard as a path to the flower’s heart where the nectar is.

Some people are like that. They are beautiful on the outside but conceal what‘s in their hearts. They leave just a hint of what’s inside, inviting you to use what you can see as a path to get to know them better.

The iris shows its heart to those insects who need what they have to offer —pollen. In turn, the visitors give the irises who invite them in what they need to make seeds to reproduce themselves.

Sometimes the beautiful people need those who will see past their outer beauty and into their hearts and love even what is not beautiful about them. Those who touch their spirits may help them desire to keep living when instead they may want to die. We lose too many beautiful people because too few see the invitation and follow the path to take a closer look within their hearts.