Dogwood Sanctuary

"The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land." -- Song of Solomon 2:12

In January delicate clusters of bright pink blossoms appeared on my neighborhood’s redbud trees. In February, Japanese magnolias offered their sleek, lavender tulip-shaped blooms. Then March enticed the dogwood, my favorite blooming tree, to share its creamy cross-shaped blossoms with their distinct rust “stains” on their tips and their “crown of thorns” in their centers. The trees’ shallow roots make them easy prey to hurricanes here in my adopted hometown, so few have survived and not too many folks choose to plant them. But in Birmingham, where I grew up, the tree adorned nearly everybody’s yards. 

One dogwood in particular, though, holds a special place in my heart. It grew in our front yard beside a lovely ornamental peach tree that bloomed at the same time as the dogwood each spring, its tiny pale pink flowers a beautiful contrast to the dogwood’s larger white ones. When I was about eight, every afternoon I would expertly shimmy up the lone dogwood. Its angled trunk led to a bough that resembled an open hand with the fingers cupped upward. It made the perfect seat for me and over the years, I spent hours perched there, half-hidden behind my fragrant curtain of white flowers. It was as if God had designed the hiding place just for me and with a glorious blue sky as its backdrop and the pretty peach tree as its neighbor, the dogwood made an ideal sanctuary. 

Often, I would go there to spend time with God, but sometimes I would simply watch the clouds go by with birdsong as my anthem. When I was ten, we moved across town and I was sad to leave behind my favorite tree. I was thrilled to learn there were about a half-dozen dogwoods in the yard at our new house. While none were suitable for climbing, each spring their showy profusion of blossoms reminded me of God’s faithfulness. His goodness, kindness and generosity. And the many hours I had spent enjoying fellowship with Him in my dogwood sanctuary.