The time I dread has now come. It’s time to thin my seedlings. This is where I have usually fallen down in past attempts at growing plants. I find it very hard to take young healthy seedlings, green and seemingly innocent, and yank them up by the roots. It seems so heartless. However, not to do so would result in the whole patch of seedlings suffocating in the midst of each other. Some have to perish in order for the rest to survive.
We can draw a parallel to this in our own lives. What activities, behaviors, or attitudes are overgrowing our lives? What habits need to be plucked out so that the important things in our lives can thrive? Maybe that time in front of the television can be eliminated to make time for being with loved ones. Or the time we spend web-browsing might be better served by writing our novel, making art, or getting involved in community activities.
Now, I don’t want to stretch this parallel too far— I am not saying you quit your job or dump your significant other in order to follow your life-long passion of collecting antique widgets and ding-bats. I am merely suggesting that we learn to walk more circumspectly, keeping an eye out for time wasters and negative attitudes that keep us from living a full life. Those things crowd us and they need to be curtailed.
By the way, I did thin my herb seedlings and moved many of them to larger containers. Already the lemon balm is taking off and the parsley is in fast pursuit. I can’t wait to see them flourish!
Lori G. © 2007
