The plants in our garden have different biographies.
The Lilies above added only one more flower to the cluster in five days. There is so much more ahead to look forward to as there are more buds.
In the picture below the Gerbera flower opened fully in three days.
It was a good illustration about the way different plants behave !
They take time to bear flowers and fruits.
The hurry and haste I notice among young people to climb the ladder of success has been a theme for my reflection in the recent weeks. The pace and plan seem to be to hasten the journey to success !
I remember a retreat leader taking 20 of us for a walk three decades ago, through a mountain. Every twenty minutes he would ask us to pause so that those ahead and behind can catch up. At the end of that six hours of walk, what he reminded us was about the essence of a shared journey. He included those who walked ahead or walked behind to belong to each other! The togetherness in the walk took precedence over the pace or speed of the walk ! The result was as sense of attachment and openness. We were together for a week before this walk and had three more weeks before the retreat ended. What the walk did was to to help us to see each other through the optic of the other person!
I am afraid that there may not be many takers of such a thought!
At least between a husband and wife the pace of journey in life ought to have a shared experience.
Anna and I know of a family who made an annual 'shared journey plan' for them so that both had their interests, needs and aspirations were attended to. Theirs was a collective journey of consent and consensus for forty years since we knew them. They were sought after by many in their locality to be included in the marriage enrichment seminars which they organised every month. They promoted openness as the way of being and becoming as a husband and wife.
The way the flowers above become open in steps and stages give a message about restful and hopeful waiting, to experience shared journey in marital relationships.
M.C.Mathew(text and photo)
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