The emergence of fireweed blooms heralds the beginning of summer’s exit and the impending entrance of fall in the Last Frontier. Much like the ubiquitous dandelion ‘Wonder Weed’, fireweed is edible and nutritious, possessing medicinal qualities attributed to mitigating migraine headaches, insomnia, anemia, delirium tremens, infections and colds.
Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium) is also one of Creation’s amazing restoration flora, emerging in forests ravaged by wildfires, restoring life with vibrant magenta blooms.
This past Spring Ellie and I witnessed another such ‘first responder’ in Hawaii … Ohi’a lehua trees thrusting up through barren lava flows, the “…beauty for ashes…” indomitable, resilient wonder of Nature!
Such were the thoughts floating through my cranial void during yesterday’s wilderness wander, mystically merging a John Muir quote with a passage from Scripture …
“Into the forest I go to lose my mind and find my soul”
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“To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness,
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified”
Isaiah 61:4
Although I’ve read this passage numerous times, the words, “The planting of the Lord”, suddenly took on special significance …
It is NOT the” indomitable, resilient wonder of Nature!” that plants restoration beauty in devastated landscapes for us to glorify. It IS our Creator’s all merciful, forgiving Love that plants both the temporal beauty of Nature for us to enjoy, and the eternal beauty of Salvation’s eternal soul restoration Jesus’ sacrificial death planted in our life’s ashes to accept, nurture, and forever enjoy … Thank you Lord!
I M Blessed . . . May U B 2
Keep Looking Up ^ … His Best is Yet to Come!
Abba's Art 
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