Jim and I had a chance to spend a weekend in Palm Springs last month.  One day we drove further east to the Salton Sea and then south into the Anza Borrego desert to see the “superbloom” of wildflowers.

They were incredible.  Blue and purple and yellow and white.  And green covering the hills.  Jim had a map created by local groups that tracked which locations were peaking with blooms.  We stopped our car on the side of the highway and joined dozens of others to experience the beauty.

Not only were the flowers magnificent, but the desert was filled with butterflies, as well.  We were there during the migration of the Painted Ladies.  So, between the blossoms and the butterflies, it was a pretty spectacular experience.

While we in the Palm Springs area, we also took in a public art exhibition called “Desert X.”  About 20 or so large scale sculptures had been set up in locations throughout the Coachella Valley.  We managed to see about half of them.  I loved especially a neon orange sculpture the size of a shipping container, mysterious and alien; and also a “rainbow” arch made of brightly painted rebar with both ends stuck in the ground and which mirrored an identical rainbow set up in Ensenada, Mexico and making a statement about the hopes of immigrants.

With both the wildflowers and the art pieces, there was a dramatic contrast between the usual desert landscape and the bright colors and vibrancy of the temporary displays.

I thought, how suddenly, how unexpectedly, moments of joy and energy can appear in our lives.  How joy can come naturally, like wildflowers, through the regular cycles of nature, or intentionally, like art, because some human person deliberately creates an experience for others.

If you’re “in the desert” in some way, in your life, perhaps you’ll be lucky enough to have a friend who will create a moment of joy for you:  a rainbow or an experience of brightness.  Perhaps there are persons in the church who will do that for you.  Or perhaps, your day of joy, healing, and new life, is coming on its own power, with the turning of the earth, with the heavy rains of winter giving birth to the wildflowers and butterflies of spring.  

Sometimes we need to go a little out of our way to find happiness, a map provided by the locals will help.  But don’t miss it.  When conditions are right, even the desert blooms.