Musings – Subtle Beginnings

I typically get a few poinsettia plants each holiday season. While I did not grow up with Christmas, I always enjoyed Christmas trees, holly, and such. What I like best about poinsettia are the wondrous assortment of color combinations. Like most if not all life forms, each one is unique. I also am grateful for their resilience. Despite my history with plants, they tend to thrive in my care. I usually have better luck with animals than plants, but relish the color and festivity of poinsettia. This year I found a standard red plant, full and bright. Although it has lost some of its leaves, it is still holding court on my dining room table.  

A few days ago while watering my friend and clearing out the dead leaves, I noticed a few tiny green sprouts at the top of the plant. Have I never noticed these before? They are so tiny and delicate but loaded with possibility.  I felt many emotions in this moment; surprise, astonishment, humility, gratitude, and awe.

I had a sudden shift in perspective, a mini epiphany.  If everything in the material world can be seen as a metaphor, (the answer is yes) then this lovely poinsettia is teaching me about development. One must rid a plant of dead leaves in order to encourage growth.  Also nurture the new leaves, no matter how minute. Sometimes I focus much more on what is dying or disintegrating than what is bursting forth.

Do you?

These questions come to mind when one is contemplating elevating their awareness.

Do you take care of your Self when taking on a new challenge?

Do you know when some creative spark is being neglected?

Are you more likely to dwell on obstacles and negativity in the midst of change?

What needs to be discarded from your life in order to go forward?

Do you place more value on history or novelty?

first image courtesy of wikipedia.org

second image by  Frank Vincentz (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons