I’m a metaphor kind of guy. Maybe it is because I’ve used visual metaphors in my cartoons for years. I love how one thing can be used to effectively explain something way more complex. And one of my favorite metaphors is “Your life is a garden.”
See, I think people are given a patch of land when they are born. Some land is more fertile than others but in the end, that difference can be overcome. Some folks grow amazing crops on bad soil while others are given rich Delta-like land only to grow weeds. Like a farmer, it’s what we do with what is given to us that matters in the end.
Do we plan our crops? Work the soil? Pray for rain? Are we prepared in case drought, insects or other disasters that come along? Do we hoe our garden regularly and remove the weeds of anxiety, fear and depression? Do we fertilize our soil and renew it? Do we chose our crops mindfully and plant what is truly needed? Do we reap a harvest so large that we can share it with others or do we keep it to ourselves? What does our garden look like?
The plot of land is ours to do whatever we want with. What we do with our garden is how our life will be judged.
I believe our lives are like a garden. Now, if you excuse me, I have some weeding to do.
I need tI do some weeding too!
That’s lovely, Marshall.
One other thought. If you involve your children in your garden, you are teaching them how to feed themselves. (Or something like that!)
Well said and timely as always : )
Wonderful analogy, MR.