I contemplate the flower.
Yet more than delighting in its beauty today, I find myself admiring its courage. Truly, here is a story beyond the call of duty.
I remember it when it was a seed, you see; a rather hard, self-contained little object. And in that state, there was nothing to link it with the colourful glory I now view.
It had stayed hidden in a seed packet at the back of my drawer for years, showing no signs of anything.
And if I hadn’t come across it when looking for some matches, it would have stayed there a good deal longer.
But here’s the thing: once taken from the drawer and put in the soil, a remarkable thing happened – it chose its own death.
After years as a seed in a packet, it allowed the soil to dismantle its boundaried little existence.
It meant the end of everything it knew of itself; a terrible void, change and struggle; overwhelming fears for its future.
Who would have thought it would become this wonder?
Such courage, such beauty; and I have to say – such trust.
