Every year, my husband and I host a very large party for his orthopedic department. Prior to the party we clean the gardens – mulching and pruning to make certain everything is looking its best. We were behind in our gardening this year, especially in the area of pruning, and when I looked at our beautiful roses, they were spindly and long and were covered with dried-up petals that should have been pruned weeks ago. So, I did my best to clip and prune away the old sections with the hope that the new growth would restore them to their original beauty.
As I was pruning and realizing how much I had to cut away simply because I did not keep up with the task on a regular basis, I thought of the pruning we need to do in our lives. Maintaining the beauty of a flower, a job, a relationship, a marriage etc. requires pruning – a letting go of the old growth, old arguments, old ways of being and allowing for the newness to come through. Rather than holding onto statements like ‘when we were first married’, ‘when I started this job’, ‘when we first met,’ allow for the fact that, like the rose, if you are willing to let go of the old bloom you can make space for a new blossom – a new way of being and a new beauty that is fresh and exciting, similar but different.
Simply because we often times want things to remain the same, letting go is a challenge for most . Sameness can be comfortable, but holding on stops the normal progressive growth and maturation in life. When we hold on, we prevent newness from being a continuous presence in our lives. So, just like the rose, allow for the space between blossoms to be empty, perhaps even a bit barren. But know that within a short period of time nature will provide a new blossom, a new beginning and a new beauty to bless your life!
God bless and go well,
Dr. Kath
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