Orchids

The grass withers and the flowers fall,

but the Word of our God stands forever.

Isaiah 40:8

I admire anyone who has the patience and finesse necessary to grow orchids.    I love to take pictures of them at botanical gardens, and I think they are absolutely beautiful, but I have no talent for growing them.  I have been given an orchid plant three times in my life, and I promptly set it on the road to a slow death.  Thus I leave the orchid growing to others.

The orchid is believed to be the largest family of flowering plants, with between 21,000-26,000 species, including vanilla – commonly used for flavoring.  The world’s richest concentration of orchid varieties is found in the Himalayan region of Nepal.  Out in nature, the majority of orchids grow anchored to trees or shrubs in the tropics and subtropics.  The Taiwan Orchid Nursery and the National Orchid Garden in Singapore are considered to be among the finest collections of orchids in cultivation that are open to the public.

There is a Chinese proverb that says:  The most beautiful orchids grow on the bottom of the gorge.  Out of the path of man’s hands and man’s destruction, the flowers can grow to their full potential of fragility and beauty.  Eventually, however, each blossom will die. It is the way of life: nothing on this earth lasts forever. That which is eternal comes from our Father:  His Word, His love, His promises.  All three are within the reach of our hands and our hearts.