In the Bulb There Is A Flower

In the bulb there is a flower; in the seed, an apple tree;
In cocoons, a hidden promise: butterflies will soon be free!
In the cold and snow of winter there’s a spring that waits to be,
Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.
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There’s a song in every silence, seeking word and melody;
There’s a dawn in every darkness, bringing hope to you and me.
From the past will come the future; what it holds, a mystery,
Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.
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In our end is our beginning; in our time, infinity;
In our doubt there is believing; in our life, eternity,
In our death, a resurrection; at the last, a victory,
Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.


 

But, Mom, I don't want to sing these songs. They're so-o-o-o boring!"

It was in response to such a cry from her daughter that Natalie Sleeth Natalie Allyn Sleeth (born as Natalie Allyn Wakeley on October 29, 1930 – died March 21, 1992) was an American composer.

Sleeth was born in Evanston, Illinois. In 1934, she began to study the piano at the early age of four. took up the challenge of writing hymns. Sleeth grew up in a musical family where she began piano lessons at age four and later majored in music theory. She wrote many hymns and songs; in particular, hymns for children and young people (see #466 "Praise the Lord With the Sound of Trumpet," #622 "Go Now in Peace," #755 "Go Ye, Go Ye Into the World" and #761 "Who's Goin' to Tell the Story?").

The text of "In the Bulb There Is a Flower" (#674) came to her as she reflected on the contrasts in life and death, spring and winter. She planted a tulip tulip [Pers.,=turban], any plant of the large genus Tulipa, hardy, bulbous-rooted members of the family Liliaceae (lily family), indigenous to north temperate regions of the Old World from the Mediterranean to Japan and growing most abundantly on the steppes bulb to watch it become a flower. The pairing of the words bulb and flower, song and silence, end and beginning points to continuity in the midst Adv. 1. in the midst - the middle or central part or point; "in the midst of the forest"; "could he walk out in the midst of his piece?"
midmost of seeming discontinuity dis·con·ti·nu·i·ty
n. .

This hymn was first sung in 1985 as part of a choir festival concert but has since become a congregational song. In the midst of the January blahs or the dry, dreary times in our lives, this hymn reminds us of God's promise of new life and "at the last, a victory."

Judee Archer Green is an associate secretary, Education for Discipleship dis·ci·ple

 

 

Words & Music: Nat­a­lie A. Sleeth, 1986 (MI­DI, score). She wrote this se­lect­ion in Feb­ru­a­ry 1985 as a chor­al an­them, and lat­er adapt­ed it as a hymn. She wrote that she was

…pon­der­ing the death of a friend (life and death, death and re­sur­rect­ion), pon­der­ing win­ter and spring (seem­ing op­po­sites), and a T. S. El­i­ot poem which had the phrase, ‘In our end is our be­gin­ning.’ These seem­ing­ly con­tra­dic­to­ry ‘pairs’ led to the the­sis of the song and the hope­ful mes­sage that out of one will come the other when­ev­er God choos­es to bring that about.

Her hus­band, Dr. Ron­ald Sleeth, heard Hymn of Prom­ise short­ly be­fore he died, and asked that it be sung at his fun­er­al.

Sheet Music