I love capturing pretty flowers after a rain shower…there’s just something about raindrops dancing on the petals of colorful blooms…something refreshing. It’s almost like a blessing of renewal. It makes me think of drops of revitalization that are sure to bring about healing, a peaceful recovery, and constant hope.

{Beautiful Daylillies from my Mom’s Garden}

And, well, maybe that is what my heart is searching for…perhaps that is what it has needed in the past couple of weeks as my mom has been in the hospital…in an intensive care unit. My heart has been heavy with worry and concern, and although I know I should not worry…well, it has really tried to take over my heart and mind. I have tried hard though to do just what my mama would tell me to do ~ “Don’t worry…you must BELIEVE that things will be ok…don’t start crossing bridges that you haven’t even gotten to yet.” I have tried to use all the amazing lessons she has taught me over the years and continues to. As she headed off to surgery on that Saturday morning, I remember telling her that I was using all the tools she had shared with me…and, that there was something very important she needed to know…that I still have lots to learn ~ from her. She smiled and told me, “Oh, you know what to do..you know how to use them.”

And, so I did just that…I did just what I thought she would have encouraged me to do had she been by my side holding my hand. I BELIEVED that she would be just fine, that she would go through the surgery just as she needed to so that healing could begin to take place, and I prayed so very hard. As I stood in that hallway with my family, I began to text friends and family asking for them to lift her up in prayer as she went through that risky surgery. I texted as fast as my fingers would choose the letters. And, the messages began to come…the assurance that I was not alone, the promise of prayers with her name on them, and the most amazing love from all over the world. Any moment that my heart and mind began to feel as though it was being flooded with uncertainty and worry, well, I focused on that word that she loves so much (and, I do, too)…BELIEVE.

It’s just a word…I know…just letters placed in just the right spot to form this bit of inspiration. And, really, it’s not so much the word…it’s the faith that fills it. And, it will fill it up if you let it. It will fill it up, and the cup will runneth over…if we let it. So, I believed, and I encouraged everyone around me to do so, as well. I heard myself speaking with such a strength, begging those I love to do just what mama would want us to do…to honor her heart and her huge faith. I said we must believe…this is what she has taught us…we can’t let her down. We can’t focus on the uncertainty and the worry that is working so hard against our hearts and minds…we must believe that she will be ok, that the doctors will know just how to care for her, and that she will come through this and keep teaching us.

And, she did…and, although she is still working through her recovery, I know she will just keep on teaching me to grow in my faith…she will keep encouraging me to believe. And, now, I finally “get it” a little more than I ever have before. All those times when she told me to believe and keep a positive mind…to not let the negative thoughts overpower me…well, now I get it…I truly “get” what she has been trying to teach me for so long. The power of believing carried me through those moments that Saturday morning, and I think it carried others through, as well. Something could have happened, things could have gone differently…would worrying and focusing on all the uncertainty have helped in any way? I know it would not have, but I do believe that the power of believing, of staying focused on the vision of a positive outcome carried me through moments that certainly attempted to drain me of any strength I had left.

I have many visions that continue to pop up in my mind from these weeks…many moments of when it would have been easier to just give into the worry, but I focused on my faith instead. It’s not always easy; it takes a good bit of redirection at times. But, I will tell you this…it is worth it…so worth it. I gotta tell you…my mama has sure made a BELIEVER out of me! And, you know what…I think this will kinda make her proud!! I’ll tell you a little secret ~ it really should…because I’m a bit of a difficult student at times!

Focus on your faith and let your worries starve to death.

BELIEVE and share it with others…you don’t ever know when it may be your turn to make a believer out of someone!

Copyright 2013 Ann-Margaret,~Designer~Photographer/Ann-Margaret’s Visions
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