Hi ya, me again.
Hows you’re week been? Ive been painting away my days and some of my nights. Hubby was on nightshift so…. us girls kinda just hung out and ate dessert. Healthy dessert of course, but neither the less, bliss. This also means more studio hours, yes!
During the week as I skipped out to my studio I noticed all the weeds growing with unwelcome abundance. What the… how? When? So I decided I would quickly pull some out to appease my occasional neat freak moment. I didn’t have gloves on and I do have long acrylic nails so…. I really did need to be careful. Too my surprise heaps of them just slipped out with the slightest pull. So awesome and satisfying seeing the garden tidy up really easily. All was good until……. I got near the frangipani tree. Blimmy….. they began to break off and bleed all the sticky sappy crap everywhere. This was not so fun, as this was just a quick attempt to tidy up and please the hubby when he got home. There was no intention for hard core gardening for goodness sake! As my frustration grew I began to recognise that still voice inside me begin to speak to me a deeper truth. I began to see a correlation , an analogy arise to the fore of my thinking. I am blonde you know and truth is,deep thinking does hurt little at times. The random thought really was profound and something I have been pondering ever since. These weeds that slipped out with little effort, we’re in fact all alone. They were scattered around the edges and solo in their orientation. They didn’t put up a fuss, they pulled out without objection straight to the last root. Destined to whither in the sun, flung on the lawn. But those other blimmin stubborn weeds….. hmmm they were all grouped together, their roots where entwined with each other. So when I yanked them, they snapped off and would surely heal and grow again , because their roots were still in the ground. Protected by the other damn weeds and scabbing the water from the frangipani tree.
So… what is so profound about dang weeds Rachel ? Well I began to think about us humans. How well do we fare when the pressures of life try pulling us out of our sanity? How well do we fare , when we isolate ourselves from those who care about us. Yeah I know how it feels. Some seasons I isolate myself and frankly I am strong enough to do this without bothering others with my problems. I don’t want to feel judged or simply can’t bare the thought of peoples opinions telling me what to do. Let me sip my wine and watch Netflix alone in my misery. Yep I look like I’m dong great from the outside , but aim shrivelling up inside.
On the contrary, what is to be said about purposely, deliberately, actively remaining connected with others? When we humble ourselves and become vulnerable to the people around us we can trust. Well, this is the situation Ive voluntarily placed myself in for the past few years. Every Tuesday afternoon from 1 to 3pm I meet with friends. We share life, warts and all. Its’ become a priority of mine, not because I always enjoy it. But because connection keeps me a healthy and strong human, and my connection with my peers keeps them strong too. Sure sometimes my leaves get ripped off and it feels like I have nothing left to give. But because my roots are entwined with others, my leaves grow back again . We protect, feed, water, and grow together. People.......
friends, we are human. We are born needing connection. Reach out to those around you. Dare to invite those lonely ones in. Lets open our selves to know and grow together. You won’t regret it. Much love Rachel