Life lesson

It is funny how so much can be learned from something so simple.  In life we are constantly faced with many problems, set backs, and challenges that can make our life feel hopeless and full of despair.  At times it may feel like we cannot go on, or that there is not hope for us.  As one of a billion people in this huge world we tend to feel so small and un-important, but the truth is that we can all do amazing things, and that each one of us is not only a miracle, but capable of more than we can even begin to understand.

This is one of my many struggling tomato plants.  I gave up on it.  It wasn't doing anything so I pulled it from the ground and threw it into my weed pile.  When I was about to throw it away, I noticed that a small tomato was beginning to form.  I felt bad, and hurried and buried it again.  By this time it had been out of the ground for a while, and didn't look great, but I wanted to give it a chance.  Over the next couple of weeks it died completely.  The leaves shriveled up, the tomato went away, and it was as dead as dead could be.  I had no hope, but because I was lazy, I left the plant in the dirt.  I watered it along with the other plants day after day and nothing happened.  I knew that there was no hope, but I was wrong.  I should have never given up!

Today I went outside and found that my dead plant had grown a tomato.  It was a miracle.  I looked at it for the longest time and tried to figure out how this could have happened.  The leaves were still dead, but the plant had managed to fight and come back to life.  Not only was it living, but it had found the strength to fight and grow fruit.  As crazy as it may sound this was a huge life lesson for me, and the more that I have thought about it the more that I have learned about life and what can be done if we fight with all that we have left.  Just because we may appear dead or feel dead, there is always hope.

Hope-  Hope comes from ourselves.  Hope is that feeling inside of us that tomorrow will be a better day and that with time all bad things will be gone and we will be happy and fully alive once again.  We need to find the hope within us and use that hope to take the dead and bring it back to life, even if it seems impossible.

Life-  We have just one life.  One chance to do this right.  We cannot let anyone take that life from us.  If we are pulled from the ground and left to die, we need to find a way to survive.  We need to show ourselves and others just how much fruit we are capable of producing.

Attitude- Just because a plant looks dead, it isn't necessarily dead.  We need to have the attitude that no matter how bad things are or may seem that they will get better.  When things seem to be going wrong, we need to have the attitude that they will soon be going right.  A bad attitude will get us no where in life.

Drive-  Only we can make things happen for us.  We are not all placed in the perfect garden, full of lots of great soil, and just the right amount of sunlight and moisture.  Sometimes we do not get water, or if we do, it is too much water.  For most of us, things are not perfect.  We have to have the drive to fight for what we want, no matter how hard it may be.  We must suffer through the days without sunlight.  When we are not watered, we must look for our own water, no matter how hard it is to find.  The harder we look for the water and the more work it takes to find it, the more we will appreciate that water when we finally get to drink it.  Those who sit around and wait for the water to find them with surely dehydrate. 

Peace-  If we spend this whole life fighting to grow and succeed and in the end all we have to show for it is one tomato, that is OK.  It is better to have produced one magnificent tomato than to have quit and given nothing at all.  Sometimes we look around and see all of the wonderful tomato's that the other plants have and think that life isn't fair, but it is.  Just because a lot of tomatoes are growing on a plant, it doesn't mean that plant is better or happier.  Maybe all of those tomatoes are growing to cover up the shriveled and unhappy leaves on the plant.  Or maybe the plant has ten tomatoes but all of them are flavorless and thick skinned.  In any case, we need to find peace in our life and what we have.  We could be rich and spend all of our time watching our bank accounts grow, only to wake up one day and realize that life is over and we missed it.  Or we could spend our days with our family and friends actually enjoying our lives and creating memories that will not only last our life time, but those of everyone that we leave behind.  Finding peace in the small things that we do have will make life so much more enjoyable and will make us feel at peace.

Love-  How do we love a dead plant?  It is so hard to keep pouring water on something that never grows or shows signs of life.  Day after day to watch it lay there dead and hopeless.  But without fail, if you love something for long enough, it will start to grow and improve.  One day it may even love you back.  If by some small chance you never seen any love in return that is alright.  The love that you have shown will make you learn to love more, and sometime, somehow, it will make a difference.  The love that we show can be the difference between a dead plant and a living plant, it is amazing that just by caring we can bring someone or something back to life. 

Miracle-  Miracles happen every day all around us.  We cannot lose faith in the power God and the things that happen that never should have.  How can the dead live?  How can things happen that just don't happen?  Are accidents really accidents?  Is fate really just fate?  Is it our destiny?  Miracles are meant to teach us lessons.  Miracles do happen.  Every day and every minute.  Miracles happen when we let them happen, and sometimes, miracles happen when we least expect them to.

Never give up on the ones that you love and care about.  Just because they seem to be a lost cause, they are not.  Water them for as long as you have to, no matter how hard it may be, and watch for life.  If you do not see life, add more water.  Your devotion and efforts can save a life.

Like my plant, we can all fight to be and do whatever we want.  It we set our mind to it, we can accomplish anything.  Never let anyone stand in your way of accomplishing your goals and your dreams, and never let anyone tell you that you cannot do it, because you can.  If you can dream it... YOU CAN DO IT!

*This is for my kids.  I hope that it helps them at sometime in their lives.*