What’s growing on….

Happy Spring! Did you feel the shift from winter to spring on Monday? Did you take a moment to inhale and exhale hope for melting away cold and the pushing up of bulbs and anticipation of seeds sprouting? 

Seeds arrive at their growing station from everywhere – on the wind, dropped by birds, in digested plant material, and enthusiastically purchased packets. A seed carries everything it needs to begin life within them. Seeds will come to life on purpose or by accident. Sprouts will be named Flower or Weed. And at the end of life (or a season), a plant will release of the next generation of the plant – as a seed. 

Gardeners understand and create the required conditions for seed growth. An ideal amount of water is provided. A perfect chemical and textured blend of soil is prepared. Placement is chosen to meet ideal sun conditions. 

Non-gardeners, like me, may take a more whimsical approach – scattering seed according to a package’s directions – anticipating some sort of musical soundtrack as the picture on the package comes to fruition on my suburban plot. (Spoiler – it never looks like the picture. And there is never a surge of music.) In gardening, I take more of a “I wonder what will happen if…” I enjoy the idea, the play, of growing things so the seeds in my care might struggle or thrive, depending more on the accidental conditions that are or are not met. 

Let’s take a metaphorical leap from gardening to our selves. 

Where have the seeds in our lives come from? And how have we chosen to tend them? When do we allow the space for ‘what will happen if’? How will we know if it is a weed or a flower? 

It is an amazing exercise to look at the rows of your life garden. What is growing now? What  used to be there? What seed or bulb are you waiting to sprout? Are there conditions that you need to tend or adjust? What is it time to harvest or move? 

Some people have a super clear vision of how their garden is going to look. They have motivation and purpose in their plan. Other people may be clear on their harvest, but see a multitude of ways to plant it. And others might wander into a clearing in a forest and say ‘this looks fine”.  As many possibilites and plans that are possible, there are even more ways of holding, observing, growing, and harvesting a possibility.

What harvest do you see on the horizon? How will you prepare? What would entice you to add a new seed to your life? 

What seeds will you plant this spring? 

Gardener or not, there is choice for all of us. What will you grow? 

Oh. And what will you choose for your soundtrack?