The Long Way Round - Working Toward Something Great
09.28.2016
I almost gave up on this lavender.
This lavender here? It almost ended up in the yard waste. I planted it last fall and was so sad when it didn’t flower as the store owner promised. Our Canadian winter did its thing and in spring it was a mound of dried up twigs. I desperately cut off all the dead branches after some Googling and remember that first time you tried to cut your own bangs and realized too late that you cut them way too short? By the time I was done, it was down to a few pathetic branches sticking out of the dirt and I knew, deep in my heart, my black thumb had struck again.
As the weather warmed, a few leaves grew in. Then a few more. And even more. When July hit, most of the branches had filled in and I had my first set of lavender blooms. It was still very small but boy was it pretty and oh the wonderful smell. Summer passed and branch by branch, this little plant grew into a healthy, beautiful bush. This week it even bloomed a second time!
Some things need time to become great.
When everything is so easily accessible with the click of a shopping cart button (even Toronto will soon have same day shipping from Amazon!) or the latest time-saving hack, there's a tendency to think that there’s a shortcut for everything. Instant gratification has even become an expectation. I’ll be the first to admit that sometimes when I don’t see the results I want right away, it can be pretty disappointing and discouraging.
That creative project you’re working on, that product you are developing, that new skill you are trying to learn, might not give you the results you are looking for right away. Don’t give up just yet, some things need time to become great - it could be worth the wait.
xoxo,
Vivian
