JELLY BEAN POEM Little jelly beans Tell a story true. A tale of Father's love Just for me and you. GREEN is for the waving palms. YELLOW is for the sun above. BROWN is for the soft earth where People sat hearing of HIS love. A SPECKLED bean for fish and sand. RED for precious wine BLACK is for the sin He washed From you soul and mine. PURPLE is for the sadness of HIS family and friends, WHITE is for the glory of the Day HE rose again. Now that you've heard the story You know what each color means. The story of our Father's love Told by some jelly beans. So every morning take a bean They're really very yummy. Something for the soul, you see And something for the tummy. Author Unknown

SPRING'S AWAKENING Today I heard a robin sing And my joyous heart took wing. Spring has lavishly arrived As Mother Earth comes alive. Dogwood trees reach for the skies, Tulips bloom before my eyes. Birds wing swiftly to and fro, Sing the sweetest songs they know. Hills and valleys are revived, Buttercups and bluebells thrive, Fish enliven streams and brooks, Woodland babes fill cozy nooks. Little children romp and tease, Butterflies glide on the breeze. I smell the fragrance of the rose, Feel velvet grass between my toes. I thank our gracious Lord above For his precious gifts of love, Expressed in effervescent Spring And every vibrant living thing. ~Catherine Janssen Irwin~

THE EASTER LEGEND OF THE FIRST ROBIN One day, long ago, a little bird in Galilee saw a large crowd gathered around a Man carrying a heavy wooden cross. On the Man's head was a crown made from a thorn branch. The thorns were long a sharp. The little bird saw that the thorns were hurting the Man. It wanted to help Him, so it flew down and took the longest, sharpest thorn in its tine beak. The bird tugged and pulled until the thorn snapped from the branch. Then a strange thing happened. A drop of blood fell onto the bird's breast, staining it bright red. The stain never went away. And so today the robin proudly wears a red breast, because it helped a Man named Jesus.