🐞 Miss Tillia's Garden 🌳 😩 The Worry Weeds One sunny morning, the children hurried into Miss Tillia's Garden, but nobody was laughing. Emma had received sad news before breakfast, and no matter what she did, she couldn't stop thinking about it. "I wish my thoughts would leave me alone," she sighed. Miss Tillia's leaves rustled softly. "Come over here by me." She gave the children a place to sit by a little patch of the garden that had become covered with strange weeds. The funny thing was, the more everyone stared at the weeds, the faster they grew. Soon they were taller than the children! "Make them stop!" cried Ben. "You can't shrink worry weeds by staring at them," Miss Tillia said with a warmly. "You shrink them by planting something better." She dropped a tiny glowing seed next to reach child. "What kind of seeds are these?" Emma asked. "These are thankful seeds. Say at least one thing you are thankful for when you plant it." The children planted them one by one. "I'm thankful for my family." "I'm thankful for my puppy." "I'm thankful for sunshine." Emma thought for a long time before whispering, "I'm thankful that God is with me... even today." The little seed glowed brighter than all the others. As each thankful flower bloomed, the worry weeds became smaller and smaller. They didn't disappear completely, but they no longer covered the whole garden. Soon butterflies returned, birds began to sing, and Emma noticed she could finally smile again. Miss Tillia wrapped her branches around the children. "Sad news is real," she said gently. "God never asks us to pretend it didn't happen. But when we remember He is still with us and look for the good He has already given us, worry doesn't get to be the biggest thing in our hearts." Worries grow when they become all we look at. Gratitude doesn't erase our problems, but it reminds us that God is still walking beside us through them. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." — Philippians 4:6 #misstilliasgarden #christianwriter #christianfiction #christianfantasy #stacyfrantz #MissTillia