Saga of Jasmine’s Garden

Jasmine Jean Maske was a beautiful ten-year-old girl who loved her family and friends and,
in fact, loved life itself. She especially loved the outdoors, gardens & butterflies, and her curly black puppy “Taylor Swift” named after her favorite singer Taylor Swift. Jasmine was a fourth grader at Francis Marion Intermediate School in Marion, Iowa and enjoyed being with her fellow classmates and friends. They were making her get-well cards the day before she passed away.

It is hard to believe that this happy little girl had so many

health problems. Jasmine was born with underdeveloped

lungs, the cause for the ill-health she experienced all her

ten years of life. Asthma, stomach problems, and migraines were an inherent part of her daily routine.

With the migraines, as many other migraine sufferers can

attest, she experienced vomiting, blurred vision, and dehydration. But yet with all these physical hindrances, Jasmine’s spirit was strong and healthy.

For you see, she loved Jesus Christ.

Jasmine had found Christ at the Antioch Christian Church in Marion and accepted Him into her heart. http://www.lifeisforliving.org She had a large strong church family there, including her beloved grandparents Linda and John Maske. Jasmine must have been ready for heaven, for Christ came and took her home to heaven Thursday December 10, 2009, while she slept.

The Tuesday before, Jasmine had been sent home from school. She wasn’t feeling well. Wednesday she experienced blurred vision, poor balance, and vomiting. Her mother Melissa called the doctor. But since Jasmine had had migraines and vomiting before, the doctor told Melissa to keep giving Jasmine plenty of liquids to ward off dehydration.

Jasmine took her migraine medicine. Melissa tucked Jasmine into bed around 9:30 p.m. and later at 11:30 p.m., she found Jasmine sleeping. Melissa found relief, as a mother does when her sick child is sleeping, hoping her child will feel much better when the child awakes. For a mother, a sleeping child is good news. The next morning when Melissa checked on her daughter, Jasmine had passed away during the night.

Now imagine, if you will, her last few days of life on earth from Jasmine’s point of view: Tuesday and Wednesday she’s hurting from a migraine. I write this as one who has experienced the whole ordeal of migraines, and Folks, it is hell, pure hell. And for a child to suffer with migraines, it’s intensified many times over! So Jasmine goes to bed, the last face she sees is her dear mother caring for her. Jasmine sleeps.

While in the sleep mode, Jasmine hears her name being called and opens her eyes. She sees bright light but feels no pain. The migraine is gone and she can fully breathe! There is a smiling face leaning over her; it is Jesus. He lifts her up in His large arms of love and sets her on her feet. They hug and laugh together in the highest happiness, for there are neither tears nor sadness in heaven, only unspeakable joy and full of glory.

We know this is true, because it is written in Isaiah 25:8 – “He will swallow up death in victory; and the LORD GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces;”

And we know unspeakable joy and full of glory, because it is written in I Peter 1:8 –
“…Jesus Christ, Whom having not seen, ye love; in Whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. “

This unspeakable joy and full of glory is available now for us Christians on earth, even though we see Him not … yet. But Jasmine is experiencing the ultimate unspeakable joy and full of glory because she SEES Jesus Christ and is with Him! Jasmine is alive!

This marvelous revelation not only ends this first post of the Saga of Jasmine’s Garden but begins the next. I’ll update the progress of Jasmine’s Garden each Monday until it is completed. Perhaps you will get some ideas for your own garden or be inspired by the faith of this little girl Jasmine and her Christian grandparents Linda and John Maske. Next Monday…

Posted on February 28, 2011.