The dogwood flower expresses the new life and hope of spring as well as the Resurrection. Spring is the end of the penitential season and the beginning of the renewal of life. Red, the color of the cardinals, denotes hope, life, immortality and fruitfulness. This is the summer window. The fish, mountains and water represent summer.
Water also represents baptism.
Fish were the earliest Christian symbol. The dragonfly, like the butterfly, is a symbol of Christ's resurrection and transformation. The dragonfly leaves the pupa and soars upward with a new body, so through Jesus Christ, His followers are borne to a new life. It also represents the journey of the soul from life on earth, through death and the emergence of eternal life. The lotus, with its roots in the mud, suggests that a Christian may rise above evil influences.