“Every flower blooms at its own pace.” ~ Suzy Kassem
A year ago, my husband, Frank, purchased a plumeria stick at our local Farmers' Market. (Plumeria is also known as frangipani and is the flower used in making leis.) As instructed, Frank placed the stick in a pot of soil and didn't water it. For many months, nothing happened.
One day we noticed a teeny-tiny, moist greenish-red spot on its tip.
Eventually, the spot expanded and began to look like the beginnings of tiny leaves. Ever-so-slowly, they became true leaves. After another span of time, a gradual budding began in the middle of the leaves.
Finally, yesterday, after many more little increments of growth, a beautiful white bloom opened.
This plumeria plant is a living touchstone for today's quote and for all that it symbolizes.
We're all slow growers in some ways.
Parents, siblings, children, friends, neighbors, co-workers, people we admire and people we don't, every person in the human race: we're all slow growers in some ways.
We may be slow to know who we are and what we want to do when we "grow up." We may be slow to grow in awakenings, realizations, heart-openings, and respect for others. We may be slow in developing willingness and readiness to say, I don't know, I made a mistake, and I'm sorry.
Just as the growth of our plumeria branch could not be forced, we can't force others to grow as we wish they would. The best we can do is love them, accept and respect them, and watch patiently, with hope and faith, for the growth that will happen within them at the right and perfect time.
Today, let's aim to glimpse the beauty that is seeded in all of us and watch to see how each person's beauty will bloom in the world.
With faith,
Charlene
PS - See the collage below to observe some of the stages of our plumeria stick's growth.
THE TWELFTH GIFT IS FAITH: May you believe. - from The Twelve Gifts of Birth
