Hmmm?

So a lesson I learned last week was on patience. Can you hear patience? I think you can.  If you are  listening carefully to that still small voice inside your head saying, hmmm? 

If you read last weeks little ditty on Planting Seeds you may have noticed a sound like someone screaming. Yes, the written word almost jumped off the screen as it tumbled out in a confused state. Like stubbing your toe on a crack in the pavement. All I could think when I saw it was, agh what a disaster.  I kept repeating that over and over in my head like a mantra as I wished back the touch of the post button. 

It dawned on me that there was a simple fix to the problem. Just erase the post and send the corrected version. But what about all the people who may have already read that strange looking post. Especially my friend to whom it was dedicated. It was then that I decided it would be less than honest to pretend it did not exist. So I called and sent her the original version. Then I did what was extremely hard for me, I left it posted as a reminder. 

I was in such a hurry to meet my self imposed deadline that I didn't follow through on the simplest of tasks. Having already read and reread the the story while writing it, I hit post after scanning the first paragraph. And then came that all telling hmmm? It wasn't until later in the day that I discovered my mistake.

My challenge is practicing patience. Even though, at times, it might feel as though I am doing nothing. It can take great effort to sit still and listen. To wait for the opportunity to make the correction. There is a reason they say patience is a virtue. 

The people I communicate with on a daily basis deserve the best I have to offer. Sometimes it comes as the cold hard facts and other times it comes wrapped in humor. At any rate it often includes sharing the missteps along with the success. 

 

Ready, set, post!

Planting Seeds

Planting seeds

Recently I have been reading my three year old grand daughter the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. Well, its what she calls reading. Actually, I am telling my version of the story and she can't seem to get enough. 

I recently told her about Jack tossing his seeds out of the window. When Jack woke up he found a beanstalk with a trunk the size of a tree. It had grown so tall it disappeared into the clouds. Curiously he climbed it to find a beautiful garden full of of all her favorite fruits, grapes, raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. "Yum" she said.

I have a friend who by her own account is not much of a gardener. Actually she did not enjoy or understand the need some people have to get their hands in the dirt.

 Last fall her landlord decided to do some landscape work on the wonderfully overgrown yard. Along came a work crew to pull out the old growth and deadwood. Pretty soon the yard was a topsy turvy mess of old root systems and barren soil. The rains came and made it into a muddy mess just in time for the holidays. Then came the news that the landscaping would be put off while the owner took a unexpected sabbatical. 

Faced with the prospect of a disheveled yard, awakened the artist within. Gravel pathways greeted me on my next visit leading to a sweet little bench to bask in the sun. Each time I stopped to visit there was some new artistic rock sculpture to enjoy. Soon there was nothing to do but get those hands in the dirt and plant some seeds. Gifted seeds, inherited seeds, even chosen seeds. It is summer now and the garden has bloomed and brought color and life to her home.

Friends are like seeds you sow. Some are gifts, some inherited and some you choose. You water and tend them, keeping the weeds out. Ok, a few pretty weeds can stay, but you are careful not to let them choke out the new life. Putting down roots is as important for people as it is for plants. Encourage the growth and enjoy the outcome.

Now we take time to just sit on the stoop and enjoy the fruits of her labor. Yum.

Secret Garden

I have always been intrigued by the secret garden.  You know the little bit of color on a garden gate that you might get a glimpse of while on an early morning walk. The kind of place that makes you want to take a closer look.  To take a peek and see what is on the other side. 

It recently occurred to me that many of my friendships have started in much the same way.

K is one of those amazing people. When I met her she was working a busy sidewalk flower shop that  had the most beautiful buckets of flowers on view. I know you say,  really?  Plain and simple, all flowers are always beautiful.  But no, these were a car stopping profusion of color that made you pull over to see what was going on.  I hopped out of the car and before I knew it this blond haired young woman was pulling flowers with a frenzy from every bucket in the shop. She presented me with this glorious bouquet all tied up with a pretty pink bow. 

That is a true gift. A willingness to pair different elements, whether flowers or people to a new and unique outcome. She has been that to me, encouraging me to dabble in art, to look beyond the borders of my life.  Without her influence this blog would have been another flower that just withered away.

In this ever so busy world, with so much going on at home and in your life, I hope you will take time to notice your secret garden. To make friendships that bloom. 

Listening can come from the most unlikely places.