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I can't escape the fact that I'm a country girl at heart. I grew up in a very rural area in South Carolina. I once told a friend of mine that it is one of God's hidden secrets. I loved looking out on the open land, gazing at the beautiful designs in the sky and enjoy priceless connections with nature. The place, as rural as may appear to be in the eyes of some, is full of Life. One of the livelihoods in the area is farming and gardening. For many years, I've watched family members and neighbors put their hands to work, crafting beautiful pieces of nature.
We often see the finished product for fruit and vegetables that we consume. The land must be prepared and fertile enough to yield a harvest. The seeds must be planted to include fertilizer. The plants must also be appropriately watered. Too much water could negatively effect the growth of the plant, just as too little water could harm the plant.
My father is one enjoys preparing gardens each year. I've watch him toil the soil and throw the seeds out in allocated areas. With patience, he prepared open spaces which looked to be void and hopeless with dirt. Those open spaces turned out to be fertile oasis, full of life. He, along with everyone who takes part in ensuring the survival of the garden, works meticulously to ensure the finished product springs forth in a timely manner. Their work is not in vain, as many people are fed from the harvest.
I reflect back on a picture that I took of my father one day when he was throwing seeds out. I thought about how our lives are synonymous to the work that occurs for a garden. We started out as tiny seeds. We were fed through our mothers and we spring forth on our designated birthdates. The garden of life continues. As we moved on in life, various individuals planted either seeds of hope or seeds of despair and we watered either that seed of hope or despair with our thoughts. We watered it with our actions. In due time, what was planted revealed something fruitful within us. As we remain mindful of caring for ourselves, let's be mindful of how we plant seeds that impact others.
Let us be cautious in what we say to others. Our words fall on some type of foundation within others. Let ours words be seeds of hope that will lift someone up who may be in a period of a drought. Let our words fall like rain, a refreshing mist that moistens and simulates the endorphins of the brain and soul that bringeth forth joy in a time of sorrow. Let us be a fueling source, connected with oxygen, and ignited as a flame of aspiration. Be the seed of hope. Be the seed of Life. Be the seed of Fire. Be the seed Encouragement. Be the seed that brings life into what appears to be a desolate land.