Dry Cracked Earth

I am a beginning of the season gardener.  Every Spring I head to the nursery full of enthusiasm and not much actual knowledge about flowers.  I just want them to look pretty in front of my house.  I spend the day pulling weeds, raking, planting and mulching.  The finished product looks amazing and I make a solemn vow to water and care for my new plants.  And I do.  For a while.

This year, I have been particularly neglectful to my flower beds.  After the first few weeks, I stopped watering all together.  For a while, it was hard to tell.  The flowers still bloomed and looked full and healthy.  As time went by, I began to notice a few weeds popping up here and there.  I decided they weren't all that bad and let them go. 

This morning, I was out front saying good bye to my kids as they were picked up for car pool and I looked at the flower beds on my way back in.  They really looked bad.  There are big, prickly weeds taking over the bed.  When did they get so tall?  The flowers are droopy and no longer producing good blooms.  When was the last time I pruned them?  The ground was full of deep cracks.  When was the last time it rained? 

I have been the dry, cracked earth.  I have often ignored the care that is required to live a vibrant, colorful, joyful life.  The deep crevices in my flower bed were such a strong visual for me today.    Sometimes our lives can resemble a neglected garden.  I know mine has. Very slowly and without warning, bad habits can begin to take root.   If we aren't paying attention, they grow out of control and need to be drastically taken care of.  Just like flowers need pruning, we too need to be evaluating our lives on a regular basis.  If not, new growth can not take place.  The most important often missed necessity is water.  We must be involved in activities and practices that water our souls, fill us up and make us blossom into the best version of ourselves we can be. 

I know my flowers aren't going to rebound with one watering.  Similarly, when we notice an area of lack or neglect in our lives, there is often not a quick fix.  Sometimes we have to prune and weed and put in some really hard work to revive our dry, cracked souls into vibrant living. But take heart, it can be done.  Choose one thing, start there and eventually, hopefully your garden (and mine) will flourish.