We recently spent a day hiking in the Chiricahua National Monument enjoying the "Wonderland of Rocks" in eastern Arizona. A volunteer at the Monument's Visitor Center recommended an addition to our planned hike which promised fantastic views and lots of wildflowers. We took the advice, and began the ascent up Sugarloaf Mountain where a massive wildfire had destroyed dozens of trees that once graced the mountainside. The blackened skeletal remains of the trees were a stark reminder of the mountain's fierce trial by fire. Rounding a bend in the trail revealed a new vista that overshadowed the great losses. Lush wildflowers cascaded down the mountainside like a blanket of color. We were soon walking through waist-high pink salvia, masses of goldeneye, and scarlet coral bells. The ravages of the fire were visible, but faded rapidly in the abundance of color. God was healing the scars left by the fire, planting a garden more glorious than the first. One that would
Positively encouraging