I'd like to share a story with you. The plant in the bottom left hand corner of this picture has a special significance to me. When Butch and I got married, it appeared in the background of all of our ceremony photos. After Butch passed away, I took this plant with me wherever I lived. Not all these homes had the same airy semi shade area as it was used to, but I needed it to be around me, so there it was.
It was an amazing plant. It didn't matter what happened to it, it still survived. As I walked past it, I would pat or stroke its leaves. I would thank it almost daily for being there whenever I returned home, as I am well known for my 'plant cemetery' full of good intentions and dusty plant pots of years gone by. I know it sounds strange, but there were even times when I would brush against it and I could feel a dampness and see droplets, as if it grieved alongside me.
I have recently moved and couldn't take it with me, but whenever I went to stay with my daughter and her family, I would be able to visit it, so it wasn't too bad.
One day my daughter rang me, most upset and worried. She told me that the plant had snapped off the day before and they hadn't known whether to tell me, because they knew how much it meant to me.
I reassured her that it was okay, that what is meant to be is meant to be. A week later I was visiting and noticed they had stuck the broken part of it into the pot as well. I didn't hold out much hope for either piece and said so.
Each time I visited I could see the top part had deteriorated more, the leaves were collapsing and dying. Yesterday, I decided that I needed to accept the inevitable, that this plant was beyond help.
As I went to empty it out of the pot, I noticed some new growth under the original stem. How exciting!
I looked at the other section of it and resolved to throw it away later. As I was preparing to do so, I mused that the plant was teaching me a lesson - that from old and broken parts of our life, there will always be new beginnings.
Imagine my surprise when I pulled the broken stalk out and found there was a whole new root system on the end of it!
The other part of my lesson is that although something may appear broken and will never be the same again, it can still be a part of my life, it will just be altered and different.
And thats how it is with life. We hold onto some things because of how they make us feel or the emotions they invoke. We want them to stay the same because thats how we remember them and need them to be. But nothing ever stays the same, change is an integral part of our lives. And sometimes things have to break to remind us that life is worth living, that there is more to look forward to and that change isn't all bad, it's just different!
with love, respect and integrity
Cherie. xx
It was an amazing plant. It didn't matter what happened to it, it still survived. As I walked past it, I would pat or stroke its leaves. I would thank it almost daily for being there whenever I returned home, as I am well known for my 'plant cemetery' full of good intentions and dusty plant pots of years gone by. I know it sounds strange, but there were even times when I would brush against it and I could feel a dampness and see droplets, as if it grieved alongside me.
I have recently moved and couldn't take it with me, but whenever I went to stay with my daughter and her family, I would be able to visit it, so it wasn't too bad.
One day my daughter rang me, most upset and worried. She told me that the plant had snapped off the day before and they hadn't known whether to tell me, because they knew how much it meant to me.
I reassured her that it was okay, that what is meant to be is meant to be. A week later I was visiting and noticed they had stuck the broken part of it into the pot as well. I didn't hold out much hope for either piece and said so.
Each time I visited I could see the top part had deteriorated more, the leaves were collapsing and dying. Yesterday, I decided that I needed to accept the inevitable, that this plant was beyond help.
As I went to empty it out of the pot, I noticed some new growth under the original stem. How exciting!
I looked at the other section of it and resolved to throw it away later. As I was preparing to do so, I mused that the plant was teaching me a lesson - that from old and broken parts of our life, there will always be new beginnings.
Imagine my surprise when I pulled the broken stalk out and found there was a whole new root system on the end of it!
The other part of my lesson is that although something may appear broken and will never be the same again, it can still be a part of my life, it will just be altered and different.
And thats how it is with life. We hold onto some things because of how they make us feel or the emotions they invoke. We want them to stay the same because thats how we remember them and need them to be. But nothing ever stays the same, change is an integral part of our lives. And sometimes things have to break to remind us that life is worth living, that there is more to look forward to and that change isn't all bad, it's just different!
with love, respect and integrity
Cherie. xx
RSS Feed
