Viewing Advent through nature

ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE OF ADVENT

Jacaranda Tree in Advent

Recently, my friend Sr Janet gave me this poem, which I will now share with you. There was no reference to the author at the end of the poem. It is now December, but the jacaranda trees in Australia are still blooming and laying their purple carpet.  There is a magnificent tree nearby to my house and it is the epitome of all this poem expresses.

ADVENT POEM

Advent bursts violet and beautiful

like the jacaranda tree 

on the very brink of an Australian summer.

It is a tree of contradictions, 

like this southern season of the church's year: 

green- leafed in winter, 

autumn gold in spring,

blossoming from bare trunk 

to welcome in November. 

A myriad trumpets cluster 

for short fanfares 

before it lays a purple carpet 

to greet its king who is not yet- but coming.

As we begin this second week of Advent, why not look around and view nature from an Advent perspective- I would love to hear your experience especially the northern hemisphere perspective.