I found this one single, tiny, beautiful, boldly vibrant purple flower today. The kind of purple that is usually associate with royalty. I stumbled across her on my morning walk. I loved how she was really representing that whole “bloom where you’re planted” idea! She didn’t care that she was nowhere near the other pretty flowers. She was not concerned that she was stuck in the middle of the weeds right next to the dirty, cold, deperately needs to be cleaned sidewalk. She just decided to do what she was created to do……BLOOM!
I’ll be honest with you, I am not a fan of most of the kitschy sayings that people pass around to try to inspire others. My least favorite is “too blessed to be stressed”. I’m not really sure why it gets under my skin the way it does, but just….ugh! Maybe because people use it to try to sugar coat life’s tendency to be really hard and heartbreaking and messy sometimes. Like we can’t be depressed or heartbroken or sad or mad or worried because we are “blessed”. Now, I get it….the concept of counting all the great things in your life…..your blessings. But, for me, being blessed certainly doesn’t keep me from feeling the weight of some of the crap life has dealt me. Today though, I’m re-thinking my annoyance with one of the slogans. Specifically “bloom where you’re planted”…. I think I can get on board with that now. The tiny, purple, wreaks of royalty flower has inspired me.
I wondered how she got there. Way over there, away from the rest of the purple flowers. I’ll bet she didn’t question why she was stuck way over there in the weeds instead of the nice, well maintained, well watered, cozy flower bed that was surrounded by a pretty white stone border to keep the not flowery weeds out. I’m thinking reasoning is not a flower skill. I’m betting she didn’t give up or complain because she was alone. She probably didn’t look around and see that she was surrounded by a lot of very not royal, non-flowery, very brown bedraggled looking weeds and a sparse amount of semi-green St. Augustine grass and think, forget this, I am NOT blooming here! She likely didn’t take note of how very close she was to the walkway where anyone not paying attention could accidentally step on her.
I’ve been navigating my way through a tough season of life lately. There are days that I feel like I have awakened in a field of weeds and grimy dirt right next to the hard, cold sidewalk. I struggle with shame and guilt and self doubt. I have endured some really unspeakable things in relationships. I have been wracked with the pain of losing too many loved ones too soon. It would be easy to just decide that since I have been stuck here among the weeds and dirt and jacked up grubby walkway….I could just forget doing what I was created to do. I could not bother to bloom. No one would be the wiser. I’ll just blend in with all the other non flowery weeds. It may be easier to just give in. To give up. To not bloom and be the bold royal purple flower that I’m meant to be.
There are plenty of flowers out there already. No one will miss just one purple flower. That’s it…..I’ll be a weed. But, wait. When I was walking, I didn’t notice the huge BED filled with royal purple flowers 20 feet away. I noticed the one tiny beautiful flower that was in MY path. I might have missed it and not been so inspired or encouraged by it had it not had the courage to bloom right there where it was “planted”!
I’ve been on this journey recently to find joy in the middle of some very complicated, messy, heartbreaking life stuff. It occurs to me that I could be brave like the tiny flower and just BLOOM….right here. Right in the middle of the mess. Maybe someone will stumble across me. Maybe they would not see the flower bed. Maybe they need the inspiration to be courageous in their own life and just go ahead and bloom where they’re planted. Wherever that is…..right now….today. Not when conditions are perfect and green and all full of loveliness.
I really want to be more like the very brave, tiny royal purple flower that didn’t ask questions, didn’t compare herself to the things growing around her, didn’t decide to just not flourish because she found herself in the weeds. She didn’t refuse to be beautiful and purple and flowery just because life had placed her in a messy, undesirable, less than ideal place. She just did what she was created to do…..right where she was……and her bravery and her short little life among the weeds, out there all by herself helped someone. She helped me.
Bev says
Beautiful! Keep blooming–you are an inspiration!
Peggy Watkins says
That was wonderful, Alicia. I would hope on the next day that you are thinking of giving up, you would think of the excruciating unhappiness you would thrust on your boys if you, indeed, gave up. You are so much more than than that pretty little pansy … you are home, comfort, reliance, laughter, teaching, creating, learning … you are the sun around whom your sons gain warmth and the ability to thrive. You are your sister’s dearest person in the world. You are meant to be available to all your friends so they can experience that very special emotion only female pals understand. I can’t imagine that your God would create someone as intricately woven as you are only to allow you to give up. Last, but not least, I would be disappointed and saddened if you did not continue to struggle for those goals you have, to burst through that imaginary flower bed, to become the best little purple flower you can be.
Debbie says
Alicia, my friend — what a gift to have met your purple flower today. And what a gift to us that you chose to write about it. I think this is what all the hype about “presence” and “living in the moment” is all about — that God shows up as our life. A purple flower in a bedraggled patch. An honest, real, inspiring blog post peeking out from the clutter of my FaceBook feed. The joy of watching a precious and amazing woman step into the arena and fighting to offer her gifts to the world — even when it’s hard and numbness is flashing a neon sign saying “Come back, I miss you, let me lull you back to sleep.” You rock, sistah! Thank you for sharing this.
Debbi says
Alicia this is wonderful . This is my favorite flower and I don’t even know what it is! Imagine my surprise when I saw it on your post.
Your words were exactly what I needed to hear and the replies were spot on.
Thank you dear cousin !