A Rose is a Rose is a Rose... or is it?

I love roses.  In fact, they are my favorite flower.  One of the highlights of my life is going to the Missouri Botanical Gardens and hanging out in the rose gardens smelling the many varieties to my hearts content.  My children are pretty tolerant of my obsession and are so kind to comply with my requests to "oh, smell this one, " and "Wait, THIS one is fabulous".  The many fragrances of the amazing rose are mind boggling...  Some are lemony some sweet, some are soft and subltle, others almost overpowering (not for me) but I'm sure for some people (and that's okay).

So why am I pondering roses in the dead of winter?  Well, besides longing for spring,  I just finished a wonderful book called The Rose of Winslow Street, by Elizabeth Camden and the theme of the Rose pervades throughout the story as heroine Libby Sawyer shares her journey from shy and retiring shrinking violet to a rose in full bloom.

Ms.Camden weaves a tale of intrigue and suspense combined with colorful, often humorous and well developed characters that keep you unsure of the outcome until the very end.  

I used to be a bit embarrassed to admit that my favorite flower was the rose.  It seemed a bit common, not at all quirky or unique.  But the longer I ponder the rose the more individual each one appears. So I'm thinking that maybe we are all roses in the eyes of the Lord.  All of us exhibit the creativity of the master gardener who in his grace and lovingkindness forms each one.  Reflecting His image.  His fragrance.  His beauty.  I love fiction that takes me back to the rose garden.