It would seem that I've taken up weeding as my new hobby! In the past, I've never enjoyed it much, but now.... well, it's been a bit therapeutic. It began with a desire to get outside in the sun and get the yard looking nicer for the party I'm planning in July.
When I found myself weeding a friend's flower garden two days in a row, I decided that maybe it has more meaning in my life than getting some fresh air. Hmmm... maybe it's symbolic. Weeds are invasive, kill beautiful plants, keep flowering plants from blooming.... Cutting them, breaking them off, mowing them down doesn't help. They just keep growing back. They have to be pulled up by the very roots. One also has to learn to recognize them. In my friend's garden, I wasn't always sure which were the weeds and which were plants that she so lovingly put there. Oh my! I just hope I didn't pull up Great-Grandma's prize plant!
Maybe I'm enjoying this work so much because I'm trying to recognize and pull up some "weeds" in my own life right now. It's strange how things can creep into your life. Like weeds, these unhealthy things can crowd out the good within, block the "Son" and keep beautiful things from "blooming." Sometimes these weeds of the soul have lived there so long and have grown so big, they seem normal. It may be hard to recognize them as invasive and damaging.
At first, I felt like I could take care of my weeds by cutting them back. Simply draw the line, set my foot down, or maybe use some reasoning. Ever reason with a weed? No, none of that works. A weed is a weed and MUST be pulled up by the roots.
The other thing about weeds is that when they are overgrown, it takes a lot more time and work to get them all out. The damage to the good plants is worse too. In my friend's garden, I found some sad, little tiny flowers that were invisible under the overgrowth and will now be able to grow full and blossom many more flowers.
In my life, some of the things I loved so dearly became so overgrown that the flowers wilted, the plants stopped blossoming and the roots were starved for nourishment. At times, I just wanted to take a lawn mower to the whole dang garden!
Well, it is taking a lot of determination and hard work, but the weeds of my life are slowly getting pulled. I began with the most invasive and deadliest. The main plant is gone, but I think some roots were left behind... I try to pull them up as they resurface. Now, it's time to recognize smaller weeds and pull them too. Time to given nourishment to some weak and failing plants of my spirit. There are many "plants" within me that I'm not sure are salvageable... maybe they are dead, I don't know. I may need to search for new plants.
