On the morning we gathered for our second annual Yoga & Flowers Mini Retreat at Nash Creek Farm, the morning air had a freshness to it that we had been longing for. It was a morning where the humidity had finally released us from its grasp and the heat decided to sleep in a little longer than usual. The dahlias and her community of flower friends welcomed us with bold colors, and the ancient magnolia tree spread her branches wide to gift us with her shade.

Lavender Towels and Dahlias

As everyone unrolled their mats they greeted familiar faces from previous retreats and welcomed new faces who sat beside them. As we looked around, we were reminded of the beauty of the simplistic yet outstanding beauty of gathering. When August arrives, so does an onslaught of seemingly everything. The ‘back to school’ season seems to infiltrate everyone—even those who don’t have children in school—and time set aside to retreat feels hard to come by.

Kimee graciously led our gathered sisters through a slow flow yoga practice balanced with cooling yin shapes and the invitation to enjoy their chilled lavender towels anytime they needed them—to cool off, to smell the relaxing scent, or to wipe sweat as we heated up with movement. Ending with the ever-playful flower pose before settling into savasana, the practice hit the spot for those new to asana, and for those seasoned yogi’s who can take their practice to the depth they prefer as they move and breathe.

As the women rested, stunning dahlias in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes were placed on top of blocks at the top of each mat for our contemplative practice—Visio Divina, guided by Aelea. Visio Divina, meaning Divine Seeing, is a practice where we intentionally seek God by praying with creation itself. Our desire is to worship God in the beauty of created things. Each flower was held with tender love and care, gazed upon with delight and expectation to hear what God would like to speak to us, and each women took time to respond to the stirrings in her heart and connect with the Divine about what she experienced.

Coffee and Community

With the sun beaming down on the flower fields, it was time for iced coffee (or iced tea) with homemade vanilla bean syrup to fuel and cool our flower picking adventure! Tina, the owner of Nash Creek Farm, took time out of her morning to share with us about the history of the farm and how it came to be, and demonstrated for us the best ways to cut the flowers so they will grow back even stronger—a lesson in pruning and trimming that caused knowing smiles to grace the faces of the women as we thought of our own lives and the many ways the flowers are one of God’s great teachers.

Sheers in hand everyone took to the fields to discover the flowers that were calling to them. Tables set up in the shade laid with bright pink table cloths and mason jars held the flowers plucked from the fields and with laughter and relationships budding, bouquets were formed. Tina offered assistance to anyone who wanted tips and tricks, and the gift of God’s creativity was evident in the unique beauty each bouquet took on. Some women stuck with specific colors while others showcased the rainbow of what Nash Creek Farm had to offer. Some bouquets were full like the abundance of summer, and others took on a more quirky and whimsical look. Each bouquet a representation of the gift of the day, the abundance of summer, and the woman who used her hands to create it.

Life as Liturgy

Throughout the day, a Liturgy for the Picking & Arranging of Flowers (Adapted from, A Liturgy for the Planting of Flowers, Every Moment Holy, Volume 1) was woven throughout the experience—or, perhaps in more fitting language, was planted within us to be tended to as we experienced what the morning had for us. From protest to worship, flowers have so much to teach us about the goodness of God, the reality of the cycle of life, and the beauty of this very moment. We’d like to share that liturgy with you to take with you as the abundance of summer continues to shine on.

The planting of flowers is an act of protest!

A counterstrike to the cruelty, violence and loss that are always so prevalent in our world. The bursts of color and beautiful blooms will be bright dabs of grace, witnesses to a promise, reminders of spreading beauty more eternal, and therefore stronger than any evil, than any grief, than any injustice or violence.

In full bloom, they are like banners on a hilltop, proclaiming God’s right ownership of these lands. They are a warrant and witness, each blossom shouting from the earth that death is a lie. That beauty and immortality is what we were made for. They are heralds of a restoration that will forever mend all sorrow and comfort all grief. They declare a kingdom of peace, of righteousness, of joy, of love, of justice and mercy.

If planting flowers is a protest; then the picking and arranging of flowers is an act of worship.

A statement of gratitude for earth’s bounty; and the invitation to hold these eternal promises more closely to our hearts in our own intimate spaces. Co-creators of the beauty of the kingdom that is now and later. A reminder that our created identity is blessed, beautiful, and meant to expand beyond our roots.

A statement of reverence for the wisdom patterns of nature and for an even greater holy mystery. Though these flowers point us to a greater eternal truth; they will wither and die. Our act of picking has indeed insured their death with little thought to their continuing life cycle had they been left alone. It begs the question: ‘should we not then pick?’ But any horticulturist can tell you, cutting cultivated flowers can encourage plants to produce more blooms.

And so it is with our own cultivation. A sure pruning can lead to greater growth in the fruit of God’s Spirit. And our Spirit fruit was made to be eaten. Like the flowers that will wither and die, so shall we; but not before their beauty has beared witness to God’s glory in a dim corner of a dusty room, a hospitable bedside table, or a centerpiece at a grand feast. The place matters not; the arrangement and type of flower make no difference. The value of the picking and arranging of flowers is in the act of hallowing God’s Great Name, wherever beautiful and broken place they may land.