by Sister Donna Schroeder
The Parable of the Sower is one of the most familiar of all Gospel Parables. There is another kind of parable that we may encounter when something beautiful is found where the soil and climate conditions seem most unfavorable. The Prairie Rose, reminds me of such experiences. The Prairie Rose is produced by a tough and prickly little plant, drought resistant, favoring sandy soil and sunshine. It grows in the fields of much of central United States and Canada. The Dakota people have a legend of the Prairie Rose as a tamer of the Wind Demon that had been a destroyer of prairie flowers until enchanted by the scent of the Prairie Rose.
Some of the Saints are like the Prairie Rose because they managed to meet the onerous circumstances of their lives and blossom into something quite remarkable. You may have a favorite saint of this kind, not necessarily one who is eligible for canonization. The Holy Spirit, unlike the Wind Demon of Dakota legend, encourages and reveals such flowers for us.