Last year the amaryllis I was given never bloomed. So when one arrived this winter I expected the same. I was entirely wrong! There are at least six blooms, jostling each other for space!

I have learned another lesson: life is full of difficulties but also, amazing things. When we hear bad news, it rarely surprises us. Good news comes, goes and flies by us in between times of trial. Already the flowers on the amaryllis are drooping and soon it will be over. Treasure the surprises and enjoy them while they last.

Maybe we need to devote some time to marking our successes and being thankful for them. To always be unimpressed by life is to let it go past us unnoticed. To decide to mark something wonderful that amazes you every day is to see there is always something close by to be celebrated. Springtime is a good place to start: all the bulbs that were hidden in the dark are now bursting forth in yellows, blues, purples and reds. Don’t let them pass you by. If I had thought the amaryllis would be the same as last year’s, I might have left it in its box. But, despite the bad past experiences, it astounded me with beauty.

In Isaiah 35 it says, ‘The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;     the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus; it shall blossom abundantly     and rejoice with joy and singing’. Even in parts of your life that seem dry and forgotten, good things can burst out, just you wait.