The gift of presence!

 

Some rose bushes give smaller flowers, often there are many. Some rose bushes have a few flowers, sometimes only a solitary flower!

Each rose bush has its own flowering pattern. 

Whether there are many flowers or only a few, their presence in a garden gives a decorative appearance. 

When I noticed a Lynx spider in a solitary flower in a bush, I felt enthused by the role a single flower. It offers a space for a lynx spider. 

The few or many are just numbers. Each offers its distinct gift of presence !

When a woman candidate who is contesting the local body election came with her husband to request us to vote for her, what she said, was a message that made me ponder: 'I lost the election last time. I offer to contest because I want to improve the facilities in our ward'. Her voice had a resolute tone. 

The rose bushes with many flowers offer an aesthetic look to the garden. A solitary flower becomes a home for a spider. 

This brought an appreciative orientation. All the flowers fade away by dropping their petals to the ground below after a few days. Often their presence can go unnoticed. They offered colour and fragrance. It is for me to receive that gift, notice it and feel delighted by life cycle of a rose bush. 

The flowers are present in the garden; one can be mindfully present to them by receiving the colour and odour as their gift. It was the same message the woman candidate contesting the election carried with her- the desire to be valuable to others! 

To live mindfully to be of use to others is in itself an altruistic mission!

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)