In botany last week we discussed bud coverings, structures that serve to protect buds in harsh weather and keep them safe until spring. They are thick shingle-like coverings with a glue-like substance to hold them shut tight. In some plants the inside of the bud covering (sometimes called a “winter-cradle”) is lined with a downy substance to shelter the little bud and keep it warm–its little blanket.

 The trees in warm climates do not have bud coverings, so if you put an orange tree in a cold climate the buds will die, and there will be no fruit or leaves. They will have been unprotected.

Spontaneously G reasoned she was the bud. She went on to say that her dad was the covering and I was the glue that held it all together. I suggest Jesus is the glue, but she did a great job. She is right. We are to shelter our little buds until it is time for them to blossom. We should offer them a soft, warm place to grow, safe from the cold elements.

It’s amazing what children will glean from a lesson if given the chance to reason. God has so much to teach us, using His creation, if we will just listen.