A Flower in Adversity

As I stood in my backyard watching my dog sniff around, my eyes were drawn to this bush. In early spring, it blooms these petite lavender colored flowers that only last a couple weeks. During the rest of the spring and summer, it has small green leaves. In the fall, the leaves die and it becomes this insignificant cluster of branches. With it being mid October, the bush was in the process of fading to its barren winter state. However, against all odds a single branch towards the top suddenly bloomed a cluster of the pretty purple flowers.

This single section of blooms made me smile even more than the entire bush full of buds in the spring. How rare and special that this one branch was able to bloom even though it shouldn't have been able to. I first tried to scientifically reason why this may have happened. Could it have been the slightly warmer temperatures lately? Who knows. But the next thought that came to mind was a Disney quote from Mulan: The flower that blooms in adversity is the most beautiful and rare of all.

This quote rang true for this spontaneous October bloom, but it also made me wonder and grow introspective. While laws of nature exist and patterns persist, there are always those rare cases where unexpected things happen against all odds. These flowers shouldn't be here, yet the bloom none the less. They are a source of hope.

Maybe I will be like this late flower. I wanted to bloom years ago. I've felt like the barren branch for a while now. I've certainly been facing adversity with this journey, but is it possible that I can still bloom? The facts right now show 2.5 years of failure. 9 failed fertility cycles. 2 miscarriages. My only 2 embryos both abnormal. Other data is less than ideal as well. But this flower made it! Imagine for just a moment that I still have that same chance, against all the odds. How beautiful that would be?! I hope and pray every second of every day that I'll have the chance to meet my own beautiful miracle.