If you were a Plant
I was talking to a group of women the other day, ranging in age from their 20s to 60s about plants. I love plants personally and find growing and tending to plants a very meaningful activity. There’s hardly anything that compares to watching a bunch of seeds or baby plants come into being with the help and care you provide them.
Isn’t it funny that when you talk nature, some people are going to feel way out in left field and immediately shut down their interest as being in the, ‘I don’t like plants’ camp. Usually because they tried their hand at growing plants and failed. Miserably. Once and done for the most part. Interesting that it was mostly the younger ones in the group.
When asked, what plant would you be? the selections were wide and varied. As people shared their plant personas it became apparent that longevity was a key factor in those choices. Some touted that sequoia trees lived for 1000s of years, or bulbs keep coming up year after year, or dandelions, pests that they are, never die
My small group of younger women found it challenging to come up with names of plants so they resorted to categories. But then the problem grew as to what the difference was between annual and perennial plants. Mind you, some of us knew exactly what the difference was but others insisted on googling, barely aware of how consumed they were with the process of finding the answers.
What now felt like a race ended with the triumphant sharing of definitions. This freed up time and space to listen as others told of how plants and flowers brought them beauty through their textures and color. Being outside in the sun and wind were exhilarating to some while others questioned the value of repeating the process of planting of annuals year after year. “Why would anyone do that?” one of the 20-somethings shouted out. “It seems like such a waste of time.”
Maybe to some it is, but to me it’s part of life itself. Getting your hands dirty, being in harmony with nature and enjoying the fruits of your labor I find to be very meaningful. It’s a sensory rush! Btw, I think I’d be an artichoke. Hard crusty colorful leaves peel away to reveal a soft, smooth, luscious heart.
Sometimes the effort you put into something directly correlates with the joy you get out of it. In this case, you are co-creating something wonderful with the universe. Think of the benefits we might experience if more of us got our hands into the dirt?