Lilies of the Field

(first posted on March 28, 2007)

"...Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." Matthew 6:29-30

Asphodeline lutea

It has been a busy couple of weeks. Last week I was Camping Mom as we prepared for and went camping in Wadi Dana this week I am Baseball Mom raised to the third power with three children playing on three different teams, one son assistant coaching, and dear husband, coaching (loves it) and serving as the Baseball Commissioner. But, when it is spring in Jordan, there is no time to waste; one must get outside and drink in all the beauty of creation before it takes on its summer form: dry,brown, and hard. So, between phone calls, emails, a trip to the music conservatory, correcting Latin, and trying to prepare for a class, I called to my youngest child to take a brief walk with me; I thought I had spied a few clumps of lilies in a field at the end of our block (West Amman, near the American Community School).

As we came up over the raised, barren part of the field, the part that could be seen from the road, we were amazed to behold the lower part of the field, filled with beautiful lilies, Asphodelus aestivus and Asphodeline lutea, to be exact.

Family~Liliaceae

Asphodeline lutea and Asphodelus aestivus

Though the Asphodels are lilies which are commonly found in fields and in the countryside, I had never seen such a mass of them in the suburbs. Alas, these too will likely eventually be uprooted as new buildings are going up all the time in our neighborhood. Youngest daughter suggested that we dig up some lilies to replant in our garden in an effort to preserve their beauty. Not a bad idea--though never uproot wildflowers in the countryside!


Though it was only about 20 minutes, our time in the field, marveling and enjoying the beauty of God's creation was the highlight of our day. We even met a nearly meter long gray grass snake on our visit to the field and just missed stepping on it, which gave youngest daughter an exciting story to tell her brother upon our return home.

Update 2012: The Asphodels will soon be blooming in the Kingdom so watch for them in the vacant lots and fields of Amman.