Thinking of Flowers

I awoke this morning thinking of flowers. Specifically, I was thinking of the way the petals unfold and how when I was a kid I loved watching the videos of a blossom open within moments. It’s a magical unfolding. But then I thought about the rest of the plant and the way a seed opens and unfolds and the way a sprout breaks through the earth and unfolds and the way a leaf uncurls from the stem and unfolds. Every act of unfolding is a mystery. Every step of growth warrants awe.

I often throw myself into difficult projects with my eye on the finish line. Most of the time if I keep my mind laser focused on the goal I can withstand a lot of struggle. I am able withstand the struggle because I do not allow myself to acknowledge the struggle or feel the pain. I suppose I do that because I believe if I am too honest about the challenge I’ll give up and never make it to the end.

My faith invites me to live differently. In my own understanding, I believe I have to armor up and numb myself to what could impede me, however God invites me to abide in love. But what does that even mean? I always thought of “abide” as a churchy word and hesitated using it here, but I stumbled upon hidden beauty when I looked it up. The invitation to abide in love is and invitation to “continue without fading or being lost.”

I imagine it’s the way the flowers live. They abide in the soil. They abide in the sun. They abide in the rain. Nothing is rushed or ignored. And they unfold. Every part of them opens. Every part full of mystery. Every part deserving of awe.

Like so many, I am working to get to the other side of many things, my training, my weight loss goals, this pandemic, etc. But what if I chose to lean into my faith and abide in love instead of armoring up and numbing out. It seems like an invitation I may want to accept, abide in love and continue without fading or being lost. Abide and unfold like every part of a flower.

Cherie Shaw, CPE Intern