BLOOM
For months, I watched my giant peace lily sensation push out leaf after leaf. I was amazed, of course, at her rich foliage, but I knew that these plants produce beautiful blooms. Yet, after so long and no hint of a bloom, I had resigned that mine, while healthy and growing, may not be in the ideal conditions to flower.
Then the other morning, I looked and saw this soft white bud. I was excited, as its appearance is not only a sight for sore eyes but a confirmation of my proper efforts to nurture her growth.
I think of this now in terms of how quickly we desire to produce and bloom to show the efforts of our labor—in writing and creating. My peace lily’s unexpected blooming encouraged me: Don’t faint. Don’t give up. Trust the process. Keep nurturing the growth. In due time, the Scriptures say, you will see a harvest.
Sometimes the most important part of the process happens beyond our view.
GROW
My Fiddle Leaf Fig tree stood defiantly beautiful in my living room, dropping one browning green leaf after another onto my sand-colored carpet. I think I heard him chuckling at me while I silently panicked.
I mentally leafed through all the advice I’d read about him being a fickle diva. “Put me in the light—really bright light. No, not the sunlight. Water me frequently but not too much. If the humidity in the room is off by just one percent, I just might keel over and DIE. Also, don’t move me, but take me outside occasionally to be sprayed down with a hose. I love that.”
Whatever. I was getting upset.
One day, I went over to him to mist his shiny, plasticky leaves. “What’s that? A bud? Oh my gosh! I’m doing something right!” I almost wept.
I’m telling you, even when you think you are failing and success is chuckling at you like a fickle diva, keep at it. Abruptly mixing metaphors, all the runners may have crossed the finish line while you’re still midway the trail trudging forward under the encroaching night sky, but you will make it. I will make it.
My fiddle made me doubt everything sensible about growth and process. Still, I chose to be patient, holding space for both my doubt and staying consistent with doing the best of what I knew, and the evidence of my effort finally manifested.
Be encouraged. Stick with it. Growth happens.