Watching new growth spring up out of the earth at this time of year is always an amazing experience for me. Year after year perennials return with their unique foliage and colors. Bulbs planted in the fall reveal the flower that has been hiding within all winter. Flowering shrubs put on their display for all to see and enjoy.
Part of being a gardener is trusting that the process of nature will continue to operate to produce beautiful plant life. There’s really no other option. I can create optimal conditions for growth to happen, such as feeding and weeding and watering, but the plant ultimately has to do it on its own. And it does, year after year, and often with no help from us.
Trusting the process applies in so many areas of life. When we send our children to school, we trust that growth will happen, that they will develop into happy, generous, and productive individuals, in spite of and perhaps as a result of any difficulties they might encounter along the way.
Trusting the process of my life’s journey is a key aspect of a healthy spirituality. We ultimately are not in control, in spite of how much we try to be. Doing our best and leaving the results in God’s hands helps us to devote ourselves to life with a sense of peace and gratitude for our blessings, and with a firm hope that all will be well.
“If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 6:30)
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