A person is like a teabag. You never know how strong they are until you put them in hot water.
A friend of mine, who has a greener thumb than I, recently took me on a tour of their backyard in the desert Southwest. They pointed out all the varieties of trees, shrubs and grasses they have planted, but one plant in particular caught my attention. My friend pointed out if you give the plant too much water it will not bloom. It thrives and blossoms under just the right amount of environmental stress. It reminded me of another story of a butterfly, perched on a windowsill, struggling to escape its cocoon. A helpful observer, watching its struggle, decided to gently cut the creature’s cocoon open. When the wet butterfly finally emerged, it was unable to fly because what was intended to be helpful had actually prevented the butterfly from strengthening its wings to prepare for its flight. The stress we experience is a predictor of beautiful flowers or elegant flight in our own lives. If we are patient and stop to be grateful for our experiences, we too, like the plant or the butterfly, will blossom or fly in unexpected ways as a result of the stress, rather than the defeat of stress. I am not saying stress is always good. I am saying, from first-hand experience, stress is not always bad. We need the correct amount of tension to keep us blossoming. And while we humans are more complex than a plant, we can learn valuable lessons by observing nature. If you are in a period where stress seems to be your constant companion, take a lesson from nature. Instead of asking, “Why am I having to deal with all of this?” ask yourself what you most need to learn from your experiences. View the situation much like the butterfly must see its cocoon – as a barrier you must break through to become the extraordinary creature you are designed to be. It is not always easy to maintain such a perspective. We often make our experiences harder than they have to be by our resistance to change, growth and stress. Stay focused and use stress to take you a step closer to the flower of butterfly you want to become. It is a basic principle of spiritual life that we learn the deepest meanings in unknown territory. Often it is when we feel most confused inwardly and in the midst of our greatest difficulties that something new will open. We awaken most easily to the mystery of life through our weakest state. The areas of our greatest strength, where we are the most competent and clearest, tend to keep us away from the mystery.
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AuthorMusings from Gammon Irons. To desire and strive to be of some service to the world, to aim at doing something which shall really increase the happiness and welfare and virtue of mankind - this is a choice which is possible for us all; and surely a good haven to sail. Archives
February 2020
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