how do they know?

I do not have a green thumb... but somehow, in spite of me, the poinsettia we planted in the yard last winter has flourished.  Grown to at least twice what it was, and the leaves cannot be told from the blooms, all alive in the prettiest shades of green.  My thumbs are envious. 

Making my way out the door, those leaves stopped me in my tracks.  The greens have deepened, the veins have darkened and the leaves are becoming... red.  Just in time for Christmas.   How do they know?

This is Florida, where the December days stretch to balmy 80s, so I argue against the change in season... and I marvel at what has to be the truth.  Like deer donning dark winter coats, or beaver preparing their homes for a long winter... or an abundant harvest of acorns that appear after a year of few... those leaves just know. 

Green leaves turning red... not yellow or blue, neighbors on the color wheel.  Red is a leap for green, but what is impossible with God? Certainly not a Christmas miracle.  He breathes His command into the air and it is so.  His breath sweeps through the branches, sails down a river... speaks a message to the soil.  He shows us His love in big ways, through small things.  Like a scarlet poinsettia... at Christmas.

How do they know?  My mind turns to singing... Does he love me? I wanna know!  How can I tell if he loves me so? ... If you wanna know if he loves you so, its in his kiss!  And my mind's eye sees Him... sending His love into the world, blowing a kiss on the wind, after His Son.  Breathe for life.  Jesus air. 

There is no doubt...  He loves us so.