🐞 Miss Tilia's Garden 🌳 🥚 What Is Easter Without Eggs The children came running through the garden gate, laughing and full of joy. “It’s Easter!” one shouted. “There have to be eggs hidden in here somewhere!” said another. They scattered across the garden paths, peeking under leaves, behind stones, and beneath the low-hanging branches of Miss Tillia. But something was off. “I can’t find any,” one child said, standing up slowly. “Me neither,” another replied. They searched harder. “No candy!” one said. “No eggs!” said another. “And where’s the bunny?” their faces fell in disappointment. As their voices grew quieter, the garden did too. Bright flowers began to droop. Soft petals curled inward. The golden light that once danced through the branches faded into a pale hush. “Do you feel that?” one child whispered. “The garden feels sad.” They gathered at the base of Miss Tillia, her great branches stretching gently above them. “Miss Tillia,” a small voice asked, “what’s wrong with your garden? Where are the Easter eggs and the candy?” For a moment, Miss Tillia said nothing. Then her leaves rustled softly, like she was taking a breath. “You came searching for things that were never the reason this day was made.” she said gently. The children looked at one another, confused. “No eggs?” one asked. “No candy?” said another. Miss Tillia’s voice was warm, wrapping around them like sunlight. “This is the day the Father gave everything, gave His son, so you would never doubt His love for you.” They listened closely now. “Sometimes,” she continued, “we make wrong choices. We say things we shouldn’t, or do things that hurt others. Those things can make our hearts feel heavy and far away from Him.” A small flower near her roots trembled, then slowly, softly, began to lift its head. “But Jesus loves you so much,” she said, “that He chose to take all that hurt upon Himself so that you wouldn’t have to carry it.” A single beam of light slipped through her branches. “And when He rose again,” Miss Tillia whispered as the leaves turned green again, “it showed us that love is stronger than death forever.” Suddenly, petals began to open and the garden burst to life. Color spilled across every path. Flowers bloomed all at once, brighter than before. The air shimmered with warmth and joy, wrapping around the children like a hug. “It’s alive again!” one child laughed. “It’s even more beautiful!” said another. From Miss Tillia’s branches, something new began to grow. Round pieces of fruit appeared, soft and shining in every color. “Come,” she said kindly. “Take one.” The children each reached up and picked a piece of fruit. One took a bite and gasped. “It tastes like chocolate!” “No, mine tastes like strawberries!” another said. A third giggled. “Mine tastes like bubblegum!” Miss Tillia’s leaves rustled with quiet joy. “It tastes like the flavor of joy to you,” she said, “because that is part of the gift.” The children held their fruit a little closer. “What gift?” one asked softly. “The gift of forgiveness,” she replied. “The gift of being made new. The gift of love that never leaves you.” She paused, then added gently: “What He gives is sweeter than candy because it stays.” The children sat together in the bright, colorful garden, no longer searching the ground, but holding something far better in their hands and in their hearts. High above them, a small ladybug 🐞 rested on a bright new leaf. You don’t have to search for the greatest gift, it has already been given. You are loved. You are forgiven. And because He lives… your heart can be made new too. Sometimes we look for joy in the things everyone tells us should make us happy, but what if the real gift is something we’ve never thought to look for? #christianwriter #christianfiction #christianfantasy #stacyfrantz #MissTillia