Amazing that this plant found enough soil to grow in concrete!
When I left my long-time massage therapist in Boulder, she gave me a wonderful gift of some lavender oil (which she used during my massage), a CD with my favorite tape of all the ones she played over seven years of visits every other week. Best of all, she gave me a little packet of angel cards, which are small little cards with one word written on them. I keep them in a special bowl and every once in a while I draw one out and ponder the message. Yesterday, I received "Resilience."
It has caused me to wonder about what resilience means. In the top picture, I was amazed on one of our hikes to see this concrete bridge with a sprouted plant. I suppose years have passed to blow enough soil into the cracks to give this plant a place to purchase. And it seems to have done a pretty good job of it, too. My longtime boss, Mickey, used to take pictures of nature reasserting itself like this all over the world in his travels. I would see him huddled over a small crack in the concrete and knew that was what he was doing.We humans are pretty resilient, too. As I watch my leg heal and read about the various illnesses of my blogging friends, as we limp and sniffle and ache -- and recover, I might add, I think about how we keep coming back up after we are down with life's little (and not so little) challenges. Most of the time we do make it at least part way back so we can continue to enjoy life.
Resilience is something my wild birds are needing in the coming months. I wonder if they know about winter or what their experience of life is. I seem to have an abundance of chickadees and goldfinches right now, along with the ubiquitous sparrows and now some nuthatches and woodpeckers are visiting the suet feeder I recently put out. The juncos are beginning to return, and I'm happy to see that they also like to eat the nyjer thistle that drops from the thistle sock onto the ground. I took this picture of one of my favorite chickadees, a chestnut-backed chickadee, yesterday, using the flash. At one point I had six of them all begging me to take their picture (I swear!). (Click any to enlarge.)
Then there is the resilience of our planet, in the face of the onslaught of population pressures that are beyond what I could ever have imagined when I was born 67 years ago. Walking around the Farmers' Market yesterday in the rain, I saw this sign perched against these warty pumpkins, and I realized that if we all treated the earth's resources as finite instead of infinite, we would all be so much better off. Because of the reminder by so many of my blogging friends, I am trying to lessen my footprint on the earth in every way I can. Maybe you can think of something you can do yourself. If everyone did small little things, maybe it will catch on. Probably not in my lifetime, but maybe in the lifetime of your children. Or their children. Thank God for Resilience!
wow, that is an amazing sign. words to live by. I hope our planet is as resilient as your little plant.
ReplyDeleteI do look for ways to not be as wasteful as I have been. I have no less than 4 or 5 errands to run when I leave the house; and when I go into Austin, I do 8-9-10 errands at least. I shut ac/heat vents off in rooms I do not use winter and summer. We also do rainwater collection, run the water through some filters, and use for household purposes. In case you haven't tasted rainwater, it is almost sweet. Delicious!!
ReplyDeleteI did a carbon footprint test and, though, I do not remember the number, it was very low. I was surprised. :D However, I have great faith in our planet, but it makes sense to do your part to take care of it.
The body healing itself is a wonder. We saw a lot of that when we owned the gym. People would come in that had been severely injured and within two-three weeks you could see it responding to physical exercise.
Loved today's post. Gave me a lot to think about.
Wow. THAT's a great sign and one I've always thought about, just not in those perfect words. Where is "away?" It's all coming back one way or another. It's one thing I love about not eating fast food and very many processed foods it = lots less garbage and waste. The sheer volume created by one trip to the burger joint is phenomenal. BTW, precious picture of those hands and baby feet to the right as I'm writing this comment. :)
ReplyDeleteI am trying to do so many things. The one thing that seems to have the biggest effect is keeping a shopping bag in my purse - envirosax - they are small and incredibly strong.
ReplyDeleteLoved the first picture! I am always amazed at the trees that grow out of rock walls in the cliffs near here. It is a great example of resilience. Your post made me feel better just knowing that healing will continue...
ReplyDeleteI'm intrigued about your massage regime Djan. Do you go there for your health or for beauty or for both? I've been once in my life and that was to a college where the students were learning the techniques. There were 7 students,one of whom was the man. I looked at them and thought, 'I bet I get the man!' Yes, I did, (ha ha) It was a wonderful experience but I have never repeated it, except in the privacy of my bedroom with my husband, of course.
ReplyDeleteIs it expensive? What should I pay if I went, do you think and would you suggest once a fortnight as being the right frequency?
Blessings, Star
Hmm resilience? DJ after 2 powerful typhoons and the floods? Don't you think I or we are already resilient (very) to such things that we can still manage to stand uup and smile after those terrifying moments? The plant in your first photo reminds me of "us" here, bouncing back and still growing! Being sensitive during tough times won't get us nowhere. Agree?
ReplyDeleteThe quote "Don't throw anything away, there is no away". "We might need it in the future and the future is now!" Take care DJ.
AL
Lovely quote,we must all try not to waste,mom used to say when we were young"waste not want not".Resillient we are,humans find ways to bounce back,I once saw a group of people on TV-they were driven out into the hot African desert from the town and there they were with babies and in rags.Yet,they are surviving,with just a thin sheet over their heads.I can't imagine how,but god takes care.
ReplyDeleteI do like your sign..it says it all. I believe that if everyone just did one more thing to reduce or recycle it would make a big difference.
ReplyDeleteSome plants are amazing..we try so hard to Garden..and then you see a survivor like your first photo..it makes me wonder if we have it all wrong:)
I do thank God for resilience...each and every one of us needs it and hopefully uses it to benefit more than just ourselves.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful post.
I like the misty foggy look of your top picture – it creates a great ambiance. The sign about not throwing anything away is neat taken the way it is supposed to be meant – but frankly I am trying to clean our garage of 30+ years of accumulation and if my husband reads your post he will say “you see I cannot throw those old magazines away, there is no away (or those half eaten sweaters)” lol!
ReplyDeleteI like the thought of resilience. Thanks for reminding me of that concept! If you can recall all the triumphs one has done in life, it shows you the strength you have called up for yourself.
ReplyDeleteAnd gives you more strength to go on and do more.
I really liked this post and then got to the bottom and "don't throw anything 'away'" and realized how true that is. We actually take something from the store we paid for and throw it in the garbage and that is as far "away" as it gets. But it is never really "away" or gone unless away means "somewhere" else. It is like shuffling cards. Or like God gone on vacation. I always wonder where god could possibly want to go.
ReplyDelete