Memorial Garden with New Light

I headed up the hill behind the church again today, walking past the house of a former parishioner. He passed away this past year. His house has a For Sale sign on the front yard. His next door neighbor was watering her front flowers and I stopped to chat. This will be the first Easter without him in my experience at the church. Each year, when we remember the saints of the church past, we remember that now, things are different without them.

When I returned to the church yard, I noticed the the difference in the light in Memorial Garden. We have lost trees this year, too. Without those trees, the garden has lots more light, and will have a lot more heat, come the summer months. It makes a difference. Just how that difference plays out we've yet to experience. But even now, the Lent rose in the Memorial Garden is responding to the new light. The cross is well-lit this time of day. What new things will be noticed because of what was lost and what can now be seen in new light?