Chinese Lanterns

These made me happy today for a few reasons.  They had been growing against a fence for decades, and then two years in a row, bugs got to them and ate the leaves in early summer, not allowing them to bloom.  I dug them out of the garden and this year, they surprised me by creeping over to the garden swing and setting up shop there, much to my delight.

They served to cheer me today, and remind me that sometimes the sick and downtrodden are stronger than we give them credit for.  It made me realize that there are times we just shouldn't give up hope.  That there are times that things can work out well in the end, when we least expect them to.