“Some people are always grumbling that roses have thorns. I am thankful that thorns have roses.”
~ Alphonse Karr
The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns is a book about family, friendship and living when you just might be dying.
Galilee Garner is a backyard rose breeder who is hoping to develop her dream rose and bring it to market. She patiently cares for her roses, breeds them, and waits for the seedlings to develop all while knowing this year could be her last chance.
Because Gallilee Garner is also dying of kidney disease. Ten years of dialysis is a remarkable feat on its own, but with each passing year, her chances of survival drop. Three percent make it as far as she has, and she can’t even get on The List.
But perhaps her greatest and most rewarding work is not her roses. It is learning that she is needed. In the habit of calling on other people only when she needs something, she can be a difficult friend to maintain. And is there any time and energy left for raising this child her sister so carelessly dumped off on her?
She isn’t an easy person to love. And she gets the rare gift of finding out just how much people do.
I homeschool my children on a small hobby farm in rural Nebraska and write about life more abundantly, from the joy of a baby's smile to the almost unbearable grief of losing a son while seeking beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, a garment of praise instead of the spirit of despair (Isaiah 61:3)
