Little Flowers with Super Powers

If you had sailed long ago on the Mayflower, what would you have packed for the trip? Clothes? Food? Toys? Scientists think some Mayflower passengers packed dandelions—little flowers with super powers—to grow in their New World gardens.

Little Flowers with Super Powers

That’s right. Those fuzzy, sunshiny flowers that pop up in our lawns came to America with the Pilgrims. Today many people think dandelions are just weeds. So why did the Pilgrims bring them? Because even though they’re little, dandelions have super powers.

Each part of a dandelion has a super power. Dandelion flowers come out in early spring and feed bees hungry from winter hibernation. Dandelion roots dig deep. They break up the soil so other plants can sink their roots deep, too. Dandelion roots also bring up nutrients to help other plants grow big and strong. Dandelion leaves and stems are packed with vitamins and minerals. Cooked or made into tea, they helped keep people healthy before vitamins came in bottles.

God has given us super powers, too, saying, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others . . .” (1 Peter 4:10a). What super powers has God given you?

Do you like animals? You could walk your neighbor’s dog for them. Do you like art? How about making pictures for friends and family? Or do you like music? Singing and playing music cheers others up when they’re sad or sick. God encourages us all to be like dandelions and use our super powers to bring sunshine to others.

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Kathy O’Neill loves family time, horses, dogs, and walks on stormy beaches. In her teaching, writing, and speaking, Kathy engages children’s hearts and hands to discover God and their own creativity. She has written for The Quiet Hour, Light from the Word, Highlights, and Appleseeds. Visit Kathy at http://www.kathy-oneill.com/