About Your Purpose and Value: Lessons from a Late Bloomer

Over two weeks ago, my husband and I had another one of these synchronistic moments of what I call “just because” expressions of love.

It had crossed my mind to write a love letter/note to my husband. I must admit that I absolutely love to write to him. There are so many things on my heart and mind that I feel and notice, and although I express my love for him verbally, I feel like I scratch the surface during the hustle and bustle of daily life.

On the same day, it had crossed my husband’s mind to buy me flowers.  If anyone knows me, they know I love  “just because” flowers, probably more than Valentine’s Day, anniversary, or birthday flowers.

During days 203-209 of my year of quitting the Holy Bible, these flowers became the Word of the Lord.

The Gift of Wait and See

My Gawd, these flowers had a lengthy run. After the first week, two flowers had yet to open. One stood above the rest of bouquet. The other was nestled with the rest and a few days later it opened.

More days transpired, and I prepared to discard of the flowers. However, upon closer look, I decided to wait. After removing a couple of wilted flowers, voila a lovely bouquet remained.  Still, the one that stood above the rest remained unopened. I  considered throwing it away, too.

Then,  I decided to wait and see.

One morning during the second week, the last flower opened.

And it was worth the wait. Its petals now rested gently with the rest of the flowers. It livened up the bouquet even more.

The late bloomer brought a revival to the arrangement. The flowers lasted for several more days.

I felt grateful that I did not throw them away.

Each day, I felt as if I had a reminder from heaven about the illusion of time.

Sometimes, we give up, not realizing that we are closer than we think.

Had I disposed of the flowers, I would have missed out on days of added beauty to my life.

I would have missed out on different lessons and reflections because each day, I noticed something new or received another insight.

It is one way that I resonate with Jesus Christ. The way he would connect with nonhuman nature to make sense of the human condition as it relates to spiritual things resonates with me.

Lately, I have not gone on my outdoor walks because a Sista has not been feelin’ this cold weather.

For real.

I have not reached my critical threshold of cabin fever where 33 degrees seems like mild weather, and I burst outside with field day merriment.

Through these flowers, I felt as if the Universe via my hubby brought a taste of my outdoor spiritual communion into my home.

Equal Status

One morning, I looked at one flower that held quite strong from beginning to end. Although it was not one of the “star” flowers, its presence was necessary, adding a variety of texture and color. It reminded me of the importance of different people in various occupations.  It is a social norm in various cultures to look higher on certain vocations.

The celebrities and people with the high-status positions garner much attention in the United States. However, the hardworking individuals who might not receive accolades for their  vocations are just as vital as the ones that we tend to highly esteem.

What if we prized the sanitation engineer as highly as a computer engineer or our favorite musician? All are critical to helping our world function. Let the garbage pile up in our communities, and maybe some of you would get my point.

It reaffirmed my belief that your status markers do not make you any more of a special human being than another.

It does not give some inherent added value by God.

We, humans, might look at different status markers to measure the worth of person.

Some cultures have more visible and others invisible ways of ranking the value of people according to the attributes that we perceive as valuable.

These norms can create conditions where you lower your  sense of self-worth because you are not embarking on some great “change the world” conquest.  Maybe you knock your “purposes” because you do not think they are big enough.

I ask, “Says who?”

We fail to realize the power of who we are wherever we are.

Someone in life is better because of your presence…

Unless you are a psychopath, which potentially complicates my observational philosophy, but that’s a conversation for another day.

Like the flowers, we all come from the same material that make up the soil in the ground. We come from the earth and in the end, our physical bodies return to it.

To God, all of us are equal status.

Stop Comparing and Start Living

Initially, I  compared the late blooming flower to the others.

Each flower had its time and role. Each had its season. The ones that started out with a bang that dazzled and sparkled did not go to the end.  In the end, the ones without the fanfare and the late bloomers gave a spectacular ending.

I thought the flowers were gorgeous in the beginning. The latter was even greater than the former.

Sometimes we think we are late or early base on a comparison to others.

Some of us cannot enjoy life without some internal comparison or competition with others.

What if you are not late?

What if you are on your own time in your own journey?

We can make a sound argument against the late bloomer concept when it comes to living your life.

If we base our journey on what we observe in other people, we are not truly connected with ourselves and the experience we are to have in this life. When it is “your time” to blossom (and blooming is not a one-time deal) it will be your time.

When we cease comparing, we start living.