Nature's Wisdom: The Persistent Sunflower

Nature is rich in wisdom if we will stop long enough to listen and observe. This is one of the many reasons I enjoy gardening. With my hands in the soil, or while harvesting, my mind is open to whatever lesson waits for me. Just the other day I learned about persistence from a sunflower.

 Back in the spring a tiny sunflower seed somehow found its way into one of my raised beds. After a few days I noticed the tiny sprout, but instead of yanking it out I let it stay. Week after week the flower grew until it was well over six feet tall. While watering it I marveled at how this tall, beautiful, plant came from such a tiny seed.  

Then the lesson came. For life to happen, we must persist and not give up or give in. 

Think about what happens when we plant a seed. It is buried in soil, then watered. There it remains in that dark, damp, place until life awakes. But, in order to grow the seed must be broken. Once the seedling is free from its shell, the hard journey to daylight isn’t any easier. It must push against the packed soil. Its roots push down seeking nourishment. The tiny leaf bud must push up to reach the light. My sunflower persisted until it broke through. Then growth happened. Beauty happened. A fruitful life happened.

 If the life within the seed had not persevered it would have died and decomposed. But because it did, it bloomed and produced more seeds for the future.

 There are times when we also find ourselves in a dark place. We feel broken. We have to push just to get through each day. There doesn’t seem to be light anywhere in our lives. But don’t give up. Persevere. From experience, I know how hard this can be but continue to push. Keep moving forward. Don’t give up. Seek help if you need it. There is no shame in that, not one little bit. Do what you can to break free and grow into the beautiful person you are meant to be. And when you do, help others from your experiences. Just as the sunflower produces many seeds, scatter hope and encouragement.

 Also remember this, that little plant took some time to grow. Give yourself time as well. Okay?

INSIDE THE CATERPILLAR

There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly. ~ R. Buckminster Fuller

Are you holding yourself in caterpillar state? Afraid that the butterfly in you will never flutter free? I know the feeling. Why is it so easy to hold back, to discount dreams and talents because others have surged ahead of you? Thoughts of how others have better credentials and are more qualified keep us grounded.

That was me until a butterfly friend, who had heard enough of me putting myself down, literally got up from the table, shut the door to the room, stalked back and pointed her finger in my face. Then she listed off all I have to offer because of the experiences in my life. What she said made sense. Sure, I may not have a Ph.D or a B.A after my name, but I have lived life. It is what Tom Bodett once said, “In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson.” Well, we’ve all been taught at the knee of life. We’ve all learned lessons. Now we just have to value those lessons that are unique to us and share what we’ve learned to help others as they travel through life.

I haven’t turned into a butterfly overnight, but I can say I’m in the chrysalis preparing to fly.

How about you? Are you ready to redefine yourself? It’s time to fly!

Treasure the "Moments'

In a couple of weeks I will face the anniversary date of my mother’s passing. Six months before her passing I had buried my father. Both were lost to me in 2020, both non-covid related.

These anniversaries have led me to somber reflections. I remembered how all human vestiges of their ever being present on this earth was given away or donated. My children took mementos of their PawPaw & MawMaw because they gave them a connection and comforted them. These mementos may be passed to their children who remember PawPaw & MawMaw, but as time goes on the cufflinks, the angel figurines, newspaper articles, certificates, will, most likely, lose meaning, lose value, and will disappear. It is sobering to think that the sum of our lives on this earth is so easily disposed of. Passed on to strangers, handed down to family. Donated to Goodwill…swept from sight. Gone. No footprint on life.

But my parents did leave a footprint on my heart and the hearts of my children. My love Christmas is largely because of them. What a delight and comfort it is to this very day when I indulge in my memories of Christmases past. Mid-December we put up our artificial silver tree in the living room of our house on 1428 Neptune Street in Mexico, Missouri. We decorated it with red balls and then perfectly positioned a “color-wheel” next to it. Next, we’d bundle up, walk to the street and admired how it looked through our picture window. We finished the evening out with drinking eggnog and singing carols along with Bing Crosby.  

Another tradition I loved was visiting the town square to admire the store windows. Santa Clauses rang bells on every street corner. Dad and I tried to decide which fellow was the real Santa. These moments formed me into a Christmas traditions lover, and they have also formed the same love in some of my children, which in turn has formed in some of my grandchildren. No doubt, this love of tradition will also be passed down throughout the generations, thanks to them.

They delighted in family gatherings. Especially if there was good music to sing along with and to dance. both told stories of their childhoods giving way to full-on guffaws. We barbequed in the summer, ate watermelon under black walnut trees, and enjoyed peanuts in RC cola while riding down dusty back-country roads of Vilonia Arkansas.

Mom never knew a stranger. She was a nurse, but even outside the hospital she was first in line to come to someone’s aid. Her humor was infectious and sprinkled all over everyone, bringing smiles to everyone who were blessed to meet her. I learned a lot from her example.

Moments. Simple things. Things of life. Treasures.

Not to say all moments were good. They were both human and suffered crushing failures.

Still, they soldiered on. Even as life grew more disappointing, they focused on celebrating family and sweet life-experiences.

This should be our focus: Laughter, love, exploring nature, music, appreciating beauty, reaching out to each other, indulging in conversation both light and deeply intimate. These are gifts that will live in the memories of those we love. They will be our footprints on their hearts and will be shared with those they love in the future.

These are the treasures we must seek and hide in our hearts.

RIP Charles and Freddie Diehl. I love you, miss you, and treasure our moments together.

Choosing my Battles

I love watching birds. I enjoy feeding them and seeing them flit about. What I don’t enjoy is glaring at squirrels emptying the feeders with lightning speed. Darned day rats! I’ve spent a lot—a lot—of money on squirrel proof feeders. But the birds seem to prefer the only one that isn’t squirrel proof. So every day I check out my window, or sit in my swing, watching for those pesky intruders.

Until one day…

While I sat on my swing, toeing it back and forth, sipping tea, it occurred to me. I cannot change and will never change a squirrel’s behavior. It is only an exercise in frustration and futility. So why not move the feeder they prefer to a place away from the others, fill it with cheaper seed, and let them go at it? That way I could also watch their funny antics as well as my lovely birds. So that’s what I did.

Funny thing. The birds now raid the squirrel’s feeder. Payback.

This battle with these fluffy-tailed rodents reminds me of all the Facebook wars I read every morning. And every morning I ask myself why? Why worry about changing another’s opinion? Why get flustered? Offended? Defensive? Angry? My comment isn’t going to change anyone’s mind. It is better to just move on with my thoughts and let them have theirs. Perhaps I’m more sensitive because of the multiple deaths in my family last year. Life is precious. Life is short. As members of humankind, we have many other things on which we can agree. So why not focus there? Every morning we awake is a gift. Why fill it with offense?

My advice? Move the feeder. Just keep scrolling.

Our Life is Our Legacy

“A godly woman is beyond average because she keeps her word. She honors her vows. She exhibits great faith. She overcomes great obstacles. And she affects her family, her community, even the world.”

— Elizabeth George

Recently I sat through the most endearing, beautiful, and honoring memorial for a long-time friend, Lewis Clark, Sr. I listened with rapt attention while his sons, grandsons, friends and pastor stood and shared the life of this amazing man. All the while I struggled to make out their faces through the blur of tears. I’ve never been to a memorial as beautiful as this one.

Drop the "S"

“People love that you’re human and that we’re frail and we face the same situations. Honesty tends to communicate with people better than standing up there like you have an ‘S’ on your chest.”

— Toby Mac

This quote really resonated with me the other day while looking for my daily quote to put on my personal Facebook page. I scrolled past it several times, but something inside me kept urging me to go back to it.