Oh, Those Thorny Roses!

                    Roses grow.  They grow with very little care given to them.  They grow without special treatment to the soil and in adverse conditions.  And they are some of the most sought after of all flowers.  Indeed, when one wants to show their love and appreciation, the gift given is likely to be roses.  Furthermore, although red is the most popular, roses come in many colors and styles to suit just as many varied occasions and purposes.  What makes this so?
                    Of all the lessons life holds, diversity within unity is perhaps the most important, and the most beautiful.  Diversity happens whether we like it or not.  However, unity is the acceptance of the thorns among the very stems that give diversity life.  One cannot appreciate the rose without feeling the thorns.  Once this is accepted, true love of the beauty can be drunk in, filling the soul with joy.
                    There is, among any and all, a greater gift which defines the individual.  Along with that gift comes rough edges that must be honed to a sharpness that brings out the beauty of the gift.  Accept the rough edges, glory in them.  For, without them, the gift would not be.  Embrace your own gift without looking to find it in others.  Instead, while refining that which you have, encourage others to do the same with their gift.  With this, unity is not only possible, but probable.  We take the bunch of roses, with its many varieties, carefully avoiding the thorns, and present them in all of their God-given beauty.