I like dandelions and I am not afraid to say it! I like the combination of green and gold. (I am fond of that color scheme because of St. Mary’s Knights of Sleepy Eye. . .not the Green Bay Packers.) I think grassy fields dotted with yellow look pretty.
When I read up about the dandelion I learned some interesting things. Many people think of taraxacum officinale as a pesky weed, but I discovered that it is a valuable herb with many culinary and medical uses. The dandelion is rich in vitamins and minerals, and it adds flavor to salads and sandwiches as well as tea, coffee, and wine. That got me thinking about all the things I find annoying. What are the “dandelions” in my life? The things I want to pull out? The things I don’t want to see? The things I don’t want to deal with? Maybe I need to re-think those things and find their good uses. Chapter seven of St. Benedict’s Rule speaks about humility. It says…
“The fourth degree of humility is that we hold fast to patience with a silent mind when in obedience we meet with difficulties and contradictions and even any kind of injustice, enduring all without growing weary or running away . . . by their patience those faithful ones fulfill the Lord’s command.”
It seems to me that St. Benedict is telling us that we sometimes need to endure the aggravating situations and bothersome “weeds” in our life. I think he is teaching us that difficult things can be surprisingly good for us. In his own way he is encouraging us to turn our lemons into lemonade, and I’d like to imagine that he is advocating that even weeds can be beautiful! So there…I like dandelions and I am not afraid to say it!
Sister Lisa Maurer 
Sister Lisa Maurer was born and raised in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, before entering the Monastery, Sister Lisa taught and coached in Catholic Schools within the New Ulm Diocese. Sister Lisa made her first Monastic Profession in August 2009. She currently ministers at the parishes of St. Lawrence and St. Joseph in Duluth.
See all of Sister Lisa’s posts.