Life Has A Way Of Teaching Us Lessons We Would Have Otherwise Ignored ..
I recently made a mistake when it came to staking up one of my Orchid flower bloom stems. I forced it a little too much towards a stake when it was not ready. I forced it and it broke. I was upset and thought, "Well that was a waste of a perfectly good bloom."
"Why did I try forcing something that obviously wasn't ready?"
The End Result A Combination Of Disappointment and Disgust
Good Question! ..
Why DID I Force Something The OBVIOUSLY Wasn't Ready? .. This lesson is something I think I can apply in many areas of my life, not only when handling fragile Orchid plants. I think there are many times in life where maybe I had applied the same pressures, trying to force things that were not ready.
Did the haste I used when trying to get the task complete, cloud my vision of the ultimate goal? I think so and I was taught again that some things just can't be rushed and the gratification of finishing the task would just have to wait.. to simmer a little longer.
Another thing to keep in mind .. Our actions may affect more than just our own feelings, our own visions, our own goals, our own ideas of what the end result needs to be and when it needs to happen. Sometimes we need to take a step back and think about how "Forcing" that "Something" will affect others, instead of putting our wants and needs above theirs.
In this case, I got lucky .. I am only talking about a plant. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my Phal's (Phalaenopsis). Those of you who ready my Orchid Update Posts will most likely agree. I'm not trying to paint the picture that I don't care about my babies, just simply not understating the fact that they are a dime a dozen grocery store orchids and not human beings.
Let's face it.. Humans are a way more emotionally complicated species.
On the more frequent occasion, we can suddenly realize that free will can not be forced or manipulated, otherwise the outcomes may in fact be a lot less desirable than anticipated. Less desirable than a broken Orchid bloom stem even!.
That Being Said, Let's Get Back To The Orchids
Mistakes And A Lack Of Judgement Is Forgivable ..
I was reminded yesterday that my mistakes and lack of forward vision, was not only a lesson learned, but was also FORGIVABLE. While browsing and attending to my orchids, I saw something interesting and a new reality became clear to me...
My "Grocery Store Phalaenopsis" Had Forgiven Me!!!
Yes, you guessed it! She decided to forgive me for my mistake, heal her wounds, and make another go at doing what she does best.. Creating those delicate, irresistibly beautiful blooms.
LIFE HAS A WAY OF WORKING OUT, JUST WHEN YOU START TO BELIEVE IT NEVER WILL
That's a new bloom stem forming .. And you can just about see it forming at the base of the node where the original bloom stem broke off. I like to call it the mitten because it's shape sometimes resembles one (in my opinion). I held a piece of paper up behind it so that I could give you an less distracting view of it.
The new bud is pointing straight up and the old shriveling bloom stem is shooting off to the left of the frame.
Below, the new bud is quite noticeably pushing out from the node. It will soon take over and continue what it once started out to accomplish. That is what she started out to accomplish BEFORE I asserted my brute force with a total lack of foreshadowing, thus derailing her efforts.
Two Things This WEEKEND Are Very Exciting ..
Not only has my orchid pushed through what was seen as tragedy, to begin again and finish what she started several weeks ago .. BUT ALSO .. An important realization was brought to light. We are only human. We will make mistakes, and some of those mistakes will ultimately affect others in a unintended and maybe harmful way. But there's a silver lining under all of these mistakes. A silver lining that maybe we all deserve to give and one we deserve to take...
The Silver Lining Is We Are Human and Humans Are Capable Of FORGIVENESS .. And Plants Too I Suppose
After All.. It DID Happen This Weekend!
“The Paradoxical Commandments:
People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.”
― Kent M. Keith, The Silent Revolution: Dynamic Leadership in the Student Council
***** And One Added By Me..*****
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I performed that same mistake once with a tiny budling evergreen. It had taken room in a part of the gutter that I had neglected to clean one year, and had begun to take shape when I finally got to it. I thought it'd be neat to keep it, but broke it when transplanting it. I was sad.
Yeah.. that sucks. It's heartbreaking. Evergreens can be a bit easy to break and most of the time not worth keeping after something like that. They rely on their terminal stem too much to keep after a break like that.
We get angry with ourselves, laugh more we must, since each makes mistakes some may not be a bloom but large ugly errors.
Enjoyed the read, glad the plant put itself on the mend, now we too must take time to forgive ourselves and laugh, very good medicine too...
!LUV
(10/10) gave you LUV.
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It makes me happy that you understand how I feel. Glad you read this and found something familiar and, like me, see that there is humor in everything! 😊
Orchids one has to have patience, personally I don't touch them, placed in tree outside and wait.
Have one flower twelve years ago, it is healthy and growing, now patiently waiting into the thirteen year, will it flower again, I don't know it is green and happy!
12 YEARS AGO!!!???!! Holy cow. Hehehe.. Yeah some are a bit strange. Some require certain environmental changes to occur before they flower; for example cooler temperatures, dry conditions, or boost in nutrient like Potassium. Sounds like yours may need one of those things to occur first. You can always try a little potassium and see what happens. Or wait and see lol. I guess the flower isn't the only enjoyable thing about orchids, so if it's alive, green and happy.. why rock the boat.
Some plants take their time, currently I have a cactus that is flowering for the first time in over ten years, only blooms at night for one night. Too tall to get photo at night, here is a daytime shot about to open later that evening.
I think it is called the Queen of the Night Cactus, found in drier regions normally.
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