What If God Is Hiding Wisdom in the Face of a Flower?
Updated: Aug 25
While painting violas, I had a most unusual experience. Sometimes, when I closed my eyes and thought about certain people, I saw violas instead of their faces. On other occasions, I dreamed about people whose faces resembled these delicate flowers.
The recurring connection between human faces and violas captured my imagination and eventually inspired me to create the painting Wise Violas.
If you are searching for a fresh spark of inspiration, today’s reflection is for you.
Recently, I woke up reminded of a verse from a famous ancient poem on love, “Love does not boast, it is not proud” (1 Corinthians 13:4).
As I reflected on these words and remembered my dream about people with viola-like faces, I became fascinated by the relationship between flowers, human personality, humility, and wisdom. That reflection led me on a creative journey that resulted in Wise Violas.
Wisdom Through Humility
On the world’s stage of performance and self-promotion, violas offer a quieter way of being seen. They do not demand attention through size or grandeur. Their beauty is modest, simple, and authentic, yet they bring cheerfulness wherever they appear.
For me, violas became God’s Exhibit A for discovering wisdom through humility.
They reminded me that we do not need to boast, compete, or prove our value. True beauty does not always announce itself loudly. Sometimes, it appears quietly in a small flower growing close to the ground.
The Face of a Viola
One of the viola’s most endearing features is its “face.” The patterns on its petals often resemble eyes, cheeks, or an expression. There is something captivating about a flower appearing to have a face. In our imagination, it develops a personality, making it easier for us to relate to it. One viola may seem thoughtful, another cheerful, and another quietly curious.
Perhaps that is why the flowers in my dreams became connected with people.
The violas invited me to look beyond outward appearance and imagine the character, story, and wisdom carried within each person.
Beautiful Viola
In Wise Violas, the purple flowers appear open and generous, as though they are freely sharing what they carry. Perhaps you are one of those violas—quietly beautiful, wise, and openhearted. If so, this short poem may speak to you:
Beautiful Viola
You don’t have to thrive.
You don’t have to strive.
You are loved exactly the way you are.
The world often measures value through achievement, visibility, and constant growth. Yet love does not require us to perform for acceptance. Like a viola, you can be small, gentle, and unassuming while still carrying beauty, wisdom, and joy.
Eight Flowers and a New Beginning
The painting features eight violas. For me, the number eight represents new beginnings, while the purple colour symbolizes royalty and wisdom.
If you feel drawn to the childlike quality of this artwork, perhaps you are also moving through a season of change and approaching a new beginning.
Recognizing it may require you to look at the world with the openness of a child—to remain curious, receptive, and willing to discover meaning in something as simple as the face of a flower.
A new beginning does not always arrive through something large or dramatic. Sometimes, it begins with a dream, a Bible verse, a small flower, or an unexpected spark of inspiration.
Comments