Thursday, April 24, 2008


HERBS DON'T LIE

Last summer I was given herbs to plant in the high desert of Sisters, Oregon. I planted them. I watered them. I loved them. I spoke to them. I sent them blessings and prayers. I tended to them dutifully, even when summer turned to fall, and it didn't look good for the herbs.

When fall turned to winter and deep snow lay on them for months, I prayed they would survive, have the fortitude to dig deep and hold on.

Now, as winter is slowly turning to spring here in Sisters, I see what I tried not to see.

Those herbs never had a chance.

Herbs just don't grow under these conditions.

It occurs to me that lots of other areas of my life I've tried to force, have suffered the same fate. No matter how much love and attention I give them, they just don't stand a chance. They are not meant to be. The conditions are just not compatible.

Some things are like that.

11 comments:

Jerri said...

Herbs don't grow in open ground in some climates. There, if you want herbs, you need to create a welcoming home for them. Maybe in pots. Maybe in raised beds. Maybe in barrels.

Or maybe in a different climate. At a different time.

There is, as my father often reminds me, more than one way to remove the epidermis of a feline.

kario said...

Sometimes, the more we occupy our minds wishing for something and trying to figure out how to make it happen, the more we obscure the fact that getting it might not be possible or may not make us as happy as we expect it to.

I hate learning that lesson!

Love you.

Kapuananiokalaniakea said...

Ah...and therein lies the rub...knowing the difference between being strong and being stubborn, hearing and listening, knowledge and wisdom.

Kim said...

Beautiful.

hg said...

You can plant your garden and fertilize it with love, but the elements are the elements, some of them unchangeable, and the high Oregon desert wont ever be the tropics.

This summer, maybe native plants for the garden?

rbys

riversgrace said...

Life and death, that cycle the only certainty.

Ask Me Anything said...

An old friend of mine once described his (now ex) wife by saying, "I characterize L just by saying--
she FORCES flowers"

I found it spoke VOLUMES and have never forgotten it. I must often remind myself that you can't really ever force flowers.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for this Carrie. After an emotional/spirited talk, with someone today, who I spent 19 years with, every day, it hit me, that I am putting so much energy into a relationship, that no matter what I do, is just not meant to be. Time to grieve it and MOVE ON. It is not ME.

Michelle O'Neil said...

Beautiful post Carrie.

Deb Shucka said...

And just think what you'll be able to do with all that energy that you are no longer spending trying to coax something into existence that isn't meant to be in that place and time. Incredibly wise words!

Thora said...

Lavender- ah how relaxing.
A good reminder to go with the flow and not try to push for something that is not meant to be .Sometimes
we do not listen to the signs.