Weeds

This morning I was doing some yard work, enjoying the warm sun and the symphony of the singing birds greeting the day. It was idyllic to say the least. I was not, however, enjoying the plethora of weeds that have invaded my flower beds. As I sat there lamenting about the number of weeds present, something hit me -- no two weeds were alike, not completely anyway. Sure, on the outside they may look similar, but each one had different structure and growth. There are weeds that have blooms, some with thistles, and some that seem to creep every which way. Some weeds are resilient and continue to grow despite being pulled from the ground or hit with the weed wacker -- they never stop fighting to grow.

Then my thoughts took a step deeper......weeds are like people. Just go with me on this for a second, and think about it if you will. Some weeds are sunny and bright and are quite cheerful when you look closely at them. There are weeds with beautiful dainty blossoms that smell sweet as honey; some weeds that creep and invade every space they can without concern for anyone else...they just choke out everything in their path. There are some weeds that you don't even dare touch, because of the thistles and "prickers" (as we used to call them as kids) because of the pain they can inflict.

And then there are weeds that look innocent enough, they may even draw you in with superficial beauty, only to discover hidden invisible "prickers" that can stay lodged in your finger for days causing pain. This is no different than an unpleasant encounter from a "thistley" person, whose words or actions leave you harboring a wound for days, or even a lifetime in some cases.

The correlation between weeds and people cannot be denied, not in my mind anyway.

I've never understood the obsession with killing off clover or dandelions in one's yard. Clover has an intensely sweet fragrance, and the honey bees feast on the nectar to make their honey. Dandelions are incredibly beautiful to me in their own way....have you seen a brighter, more determined flower, bloom without needing any care whatsoever? What parent hasn't been presented with a bouquet of dandelions lovingly hand-picked from their children?
What young girl hasn't weaved a headband of dandelions on a warm summer day?
Dandelions represent warmth, childlike innocence, and steadfast determination to me. Thankfully, I am very blessed to have known some people in my lifetime who have these traits. They are precious to me.

Unfortunately I have also known some folks with thistles, and have learned to steer clear of what their thistles represent. I'm also guarded with creeping weeds as well, as oftentimes they will trample anyone or everything in their path to get what they want.

There are life lessons all around us, we simply need to take the time to notice them. I am very thankful for the weeds in my flowerbed, they certainly taught me a valuable lesson this morning!